Paper Hearts and Promises
by Moriens-der-Lyset
Summary: Roxas had everything before his parents died. Now, he is sent to live with the von Fusen family. Lost in a sea of unfamiliarity, it seems he can only depend on himself... or will the von Fusen's son Axel step in and give him a reason to keep going?
1. Chapter One: Unfamiliar

**Title:** Paper Hearts and Promises  
><strong>Fandom:<strong> Kingdom Hearts  
><strong>Rating:<strong> M  
><strong>Pairings:<strong> Mainly Axel/Roxas, but some Roxas/Namine, Sora/Riku, Larxene/Marluxia, and numerous others.  
><strong>Warnings:<strong> Some foul language, sexual content, and boy love.  
><strong>Summary:<strong> Roxas had everything before the death of his parents. Now, without any family or home left to his name, he is sent to stay with the best friends of his parents, the von Fusen family. Lost in a sea of unfamiliar places, faces, and emotions, Roxas seems to have only himself to depend on… or will the von Fusens' son Axel step up and give him a reason to keep going through these dark times?  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> Kingdom Hearts © Disney and Square Enix, Final Fantasy © Square Enix, all other references do not belong to me.

**Author's Note:** Well, I'm new to this whole fanfiction business. Paper Hearts and Promises is my first-ever fanfiction longer than three pages. Any and all feedback, as long as it's constructive criticism, is greatly appreciated. Well, I don't wanna talk (write?) your ears (eyes?) off, so enjoy!

~::~

_My parents are dead_.

A boy with spiky blonde hair stared out the car window at the raindrops streaking down from the gray sky. The black clouds in the sky obscured the sun, mimicking the boy's dark mood. No matter how hard he tried to focus on something else, those four words continued to echo in his mind.

_My parents are dead_. _My parents_…

"…Roxas?" The boy was jolted back to reality. He looked up to see the woman in the driver's seat gazing at him with worried green eyes. "We're here. Do you need help carrying any of your bags?"

Roxas shook his head and grabbed the three suitcases he had brought from his old house. "Nah, I've got it, Mrs. von Fusen." _Unless you can get my life back, I don't want your help._

"Call me Peggy, please," She opened her car door and slid out. "You're so polite… My son could learn a thing or two from you."

Roxas smirked to himself as he dragged his bags out of the car and then kicked the door shut. _You think I'm polite? Ha. Just you wait._ "Just set those down somewhere. You can unpack after you acquaint yourself with the house." The blonde lugged his luggage to a corner of the cluttered garage and then hurried after the green-eyed woman, who had disappeared into the main house. He heard her announce their arrival, and a man who he took to be Mrs. von Fusen's husband appeared out of a door to his left.

"Hello, Roxas," The man shook his hand. "I'm Peggy's husband Arthur."

Before Roxas could respond, a voice called, "So this is my new roommate, huh?" Everyone turned to see a gangly, redheaded boy sauntering down the staircase. A smirk curled the corners of his lips. He stopped in front of Roxas and stared down at him. "Damn, you're puny."

Roxas bristled as Mrs. von Fusen scolded the redhead. "Young man, what did I told you about cursing on Sundays?"

"Sorry, Mom. I forgot," The tall boy never took his eyes from Roxas. "Well, shorty, better get your stuff. We're sharing a room, so I've got some ground rules to lay out."

Roxas glared at the redhead. "Fine, Flamesilocks." _Who the hell does he think he is?_

The other boy's green eyes glinted. "My name is _not_ Flamesilocks. It's Axel. Commit it to memory."

Roxas sneered at him and then went to retrieve his luggage from the garage. When he returned, he came in on the tail end of a good scolding of Axel by Mrs. von Fusen. "…he is a guest in our home, and he's just gone through a traumatic experience. At least try to treat him okay. Be a supportive older brother. Got it?"

Axel's emerald eyes flicked to Roxas, not touched by the smile plastered on his face. "Hello again, _little brother_. Time to get you settled," Roxas could almost taste the sarcasm that dripped off the redhead's words. "My- I mean, _our_- room is upstairs." Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen motioned for Roxas to follow their son, but he was reluctant to go. There was something disconcerting about those bright green eyes, the teardrop tattoos on his cheeks, the ease with which he condemned a boy who he had just met. Roxas's parents had told him not to talk to strangers, and this Axel was no exception.

Despite his unease, Roxas nonetheless followed the redhead up the steep staircase. There was a door at the top of the staircase. Axel stopped in front of it and turned around to face Roxas. Standing two steps above him, the redhead seemed even more intimidating. "Alright, pipsqueak," Axel's tone was low and dangerous. "Rule number one: My room is my room. You're just living here."

They entered, and Roxas was surprised to see that Axel's room was much cleaner than he expected. The windows on the wall opposite the door were open, and he was glad to see that it had stopped raining. A breeze that smelled of damp earth and water blew in through them, ruffling the black sheets on the bottom rung of the bunk beds against the right wall. Roxas walked past Axel and headed for a chest of drawers on his left. He reached out a hand to pick up a small phoenix figurine, but another hand grabbed his wrist.

"Rule number two: Don't touch my shit."

Roxas glared up at Axel and yanked his hand out of the other boy's grasp. "Don't curse on Sundays."

The dangerous green eyes narrowed. "I'll do whatever the hell I want, shorty. I'm practicing for when I graduate. No one will be telling me what to do then."

"I pity the rest of us when that happens," Roxas didn't know where all of this venom was stemming from. He'd only met Axel… what, fifteen minutes ago? Less?

Wary of Axel's possessions, Roxas wandered over to one of the open windows. The breeze caressed his face, and he leaned on the window sill. He stared out over the vast expanse of land below. The von Fusens' house was on the side of a mountain, overlooking the valley and its contents. The windows in Axel's room were on the back of the house, facing the steep drop. He looked down, and the sheer drop just a few feet away sent his head reeling.

"Don't fall out, dumbass. If you die, Mom'll blame me, and I'll have to kill you again as revenge."

Roxas ignored Axel, though he wondered how in the world you could kill someone twice. Now bored with the view out the window, he retrieved his suitcases and glanced at Axel, who was sprawled out on the bottom bunk bed. "Where does my stuff go?"

"Closet," Axel pointed to a door on the right wall. "All my stuff's in the dresser. I don't like closets. They're… small."

Roxas opened the door of the empty closet and dragged his heavy bags inside. He unzipped one and began making piles on the floor, shirts here, jeans over there, and everything else in a pile unto itself.

Axel's voice split the silence. "Can you reach the shelves in there, Mr. Vertically Challenged?"

Roxas stuck his head out of the door and glared at the redhead. "You're a dick."

"Who's cussing now, blondie?" Rather than reply to the obnoxious redhead, Roxas withdrew back into the closet and finished unpacking. It must have taken him an hour or two, because when he finally emerged from the closet, sun was pouring in through the windows.

Axel, now sitting with his laptop propped on one knee and a notebook on the other, looked up and smirked when he saw Roxas. "Finally coming out of the closet, are we?"

"Shut up," Roxas growled. "I'm not gay." He walked past the bunk beds, heading back to the windows to see if the view had improved.

Axel made a small sound of disapproval. "Such a shame. You've got a nice ass."

_Did he really just say that?_ The blonde boy's cheeks burned and he struggled not to slug Axel. "Too bad for you, Flamesilocks, because you're not getting any from me."

Mrs. von Fusen's voice drifted up the stairs and through the door, forestalling any further reply from the redhead. "Time for dinner, boys!"

Roxas turned towards the door, avoiding Axel's piercing green gaze. Right as he passed the bed, Axel stood up in one fluid movement, his arm barely brushing the blonde's.

"Remember who's room you're sleeping in, Prince Charming. Don't anger your roommate."

Feeling queasy all of a sudden, Roxas followed the redhead down the stairs and into the kitchen.

~::~

Dinner was, to say the least, awkward. Axel and Roxas were seated across the table from each other, and they took great measures to avoid looking at one another. The blonde stared down at the spaghetti on his plate, poking at it half-heartedly with his fork. The local news was turned on, and Roxas could hear the reporter saying something about the skyrocketing gas prices over Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen's conversation about all the rainy weather that had been hanging around. He looked up to find Axel staring at him with an angry glint in his eyes. When the redhead met his eyes, he became very interested in the TV all of a sudden.

Roxas muttered under his breath, "Freaking douchebag."

"What was that, dear?" The blonde winced as Mrs. von Fusen spoke.

"Um… I said the spaghetti is really good," _Nice save, idiot_. "That's all."

Axel's mother smiled. "Oh, thank you. Do you like Italian food?"

Roxas shrugged. "It's pretty good, I guess. I really like Chinese food, actually. Italian is my second favorite."

Mr. von Fusen chuckled. "Chinese is not something my wife can cook, unfortunately. The last time she tried, the stove almost caught on fire." Mrs. von Fusen gave him a playful slap and they both laughed. Roxas couldn't help but laugh a little himself. He glanced at Axel to find him staring off into space with a morose expression on his face. The redhead's parents also glanced at their son with concern in their eyes.

"Axel?" He turned his gaze to his mother. "Are you done?"

"Yeah. Dinner was good," The legs of his chair scraped the floor as he stood. He planted a small kiss on his mother's cheek, nodded to his father, and disappeared through the doorway.

"He doesn't seem to like me very much," Roxas mused in a quiet voice.

Mrs. von Fusen sighed. "Axel… he likes his privacy. He's just really annoyed that he has to share his room with a complete stranger. Maybe if he had met you when your parents and we got together, things would be different. Just give him time. He'll warm up to you."

_If my parents hadn't died, I wouldn't be here_. "Maybe. I sure hope he will, if I'm going to sleep in the same room as him," Roxas replied. "And I think I'm done, too. I will agree with Axel on one thing- dinner _was_ good." He picked up his plate, intending to put it in the sink, but Mrs. von Fusen stopped him.

"I'll clean up later, honey. Just leave it on the table." Roxas nodded and set his plate back down. He took his leave of the kitchen and headed upstairs.

When he entered the bed room, Axel was nowhere to be seen. A door he had not noticed before stood open on the left wall. Curiosity overcame the blonde boy, and he walked over and peeked inside. _Just a bathroom? That's disappointing_. He stepped in and realized a breeze was blowing in from the crack under another door to his right. He opened it and stepped through.

"Hey, nosy. I was wondering how long it would take you to find me," Axel was leaning against the wooden railing of the balcony they were standing on, a lit cigarette in one hand and a book in the other. He hadn't even looked up when Roxas had appeared. "Welcome to my escape from the world."

"Um… Thanks?" The blonde peered over the railing. _If this thing falls, I'm gonna die_. "Since when was this out here?"

The redhead grinned. "I dunno. Since the house was built, I guess," He paused and his smile faded. "Mom and Dad don't know about it, though, so if you tell them, you're gonna get acquainted with the ground down below."

_Angry Axel is scarier than a falling balcony. And more likely to hurt me._ "I promise I won't tell. I value my life."

Axel took a long drag on his cigarette and exhaled a cloud of smoke. He waited a good two minutes before he graced Roxas with a reply. "A promise is like a glass vase, beautiful to look at and worth less than what was paid for it. It takes up space in the house of the mind and just sits there, useless, a trophy bride forged of broken smiles and empty words."

Roxas stared at Axel, lost for words. Poetry was the last thing he had expected from such a cold person. Nor did he expect an analysis of that depth of something he had said out of sheer habit.

The silence stretched on for several minutes. The two boys stared at each other, neither daring to look away, as if it would be some sort of defeat in a game to which neither new the rules. Only when the setting sun came out from behind a cloud bank did Roxas look down, spots dancing before his eyes. When he looked back up, Axel was scribbling something in the book he was holding with a pen that had appeared from thin air. The redhead held the cigarette between his lips. Roxas realized the book was not a book at all, but a small journal.

"Sorry if I fried your brain, munchkin. That was probably a little too deep for five-thirty in the afternoon."

Roxas sat down and leaned against the wall of the house behind him, a dry chuckle forced from his throat. "My brain was fried well before I got here." _My parents are dead_.

Axel sat facing him, green eyes twinkling. "Are your delicate little synapses too scorched to answer questions? If I'm gonna share a room with a stranger, I'd like to know if he's a mass murderer or not."

Roxas raised an eyebrow. "Do I look like a mass murderer?"

"I wouldn't know. Never met one."

The blonde rolled his eyes. "Fine. Ask your questions." _What a weirdo_.

Axel grinned. "Alright. Well, first off, I don't know how old you are."

"Seventeen this October."

"So you're a… junior, right?"

Roxas coughed as Axel blew out another cloud of smoke. "Nah, I'm a senior. I was home schooled when I was little and I skipped second grade."

"Lucky bastard. You only have to endure eleven years of hell," Axel paused before asking his first real question. "What's your favorite color?"

"Blue."

"Favorite genre of music?"

"Classical, probably. But I like rock, too."

"…you're weird. How about your favorite… vegetable?"

Roxas gave Axel a strange look. "What kind of question is that? Um… Cucumber."

The two boys went on asking and answering silly, generic questions until the sun was almost swallowed up by the horizon. Axel's cigarette was long burnt to a stub, and he chewed the end of his pen in its place.

"Well, that's all of the relatively non-invasive questions I can come up with," The redhead sighed, staring out over the darkened valley below. A thought seemed to strike him and began scribbling something in his journal. He looked up at Roxas all of a sudden. "Do you mind if I ask some more personal questions? I still haven't figured out if you're a mass murderer yet."

Roxas shook his head. "Go ahead. They can't be that bad."

"Alright, but don't tell me I didn't warn you," Axel's eyes glinted in the dying rays of the sun. "Have you ever done drugs?"

"No, and I don't plan on it."

"Ever killed someone?"

"I…" Roxas paused. "No."

Axel smirked. "So you're not a mass murderer, then. Good."

The blonde rolled his eyes. "No duh, dumbass. If I was, you'd be dead already. Are you done? I promised my friends back home I'd call them."

"One last question. What's your sexuality?"

Roxas, who has been in the process of standing up, stumbled and sat back down with a thud. "Okay, that one's pretty personal. But honestly, I'm not really sure. Right now I'm leaning towards asexual."

Axel raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?"

"Never had a girlfriend. Or boyfriend. Whatever."

"Well, we'll have to fix that," Axel stood and glanced at the place where the sun had just disappeared. "You're free to go."

Roxas got to his feet and walked back inside, head spinning, leaving Axel to stare into the darkness.

~::~

"…shit, man, you're out of it."

Roxas admitted to himself that he was, in fact, _very_ out of it. The chatter on the packed school bus did little to help his headache. The phone call he had shared with his three best friends back home had left him a bit of a daze. He could still hear the crackle of static as Hayner, the ever-energetic troublemaker, tried to steal Olette's cell phone while Pence laughed in the background, the excitement in their voices, and their insistences that he come and visit as soon as possible. Roxas wished he was with them instead of on his way to an unfamiliar high school with even more unfamiliar people.

"Yo, Sir Space-a-Lot, did you hear a word I just said?" Roxas stared at Axel with a blank look on his face. "I take that as a no."

The bus hit a bump and Roxas grabbed his black and white checkered backpack before it hit the floor. "Was it important?"

The redhead glanced at the dishwater blonde boy sitting across the aisle from him, a smile curling his lips. "Looks like there's hope for out little zombie after all, Demyx."

Demyx brushed a few strands of hair that had come lose from his mullet-like hairdo out of his face. "Ah, so he does speak. I was beginning to think he was mute or something."

Roxas looked past Axel at the other boy. "Were you guys talking about me when I was in LaLaLand?"

Axel and Demyx exchanged another glance. "Not the whole time," Axel responded. "Most of it was actually advice on-…shit, we're here. Welcome to Hell, more commonly known as Traverse High."

Roxas stared out the window at the impressive red brick building that was his new school. It had at least three floors, a gymnasium, a large cafeteria, and an auditorium, as far as he could see. The blonde decided at least three of his old high school could fit in it, if not more. _I want my old school back. I want my friends back. I want my whole damn life back. Mom and Dad, why did you have to go and die on me?_

"Come on, idiot," Axel grabbed Roxas and dragged him off the bus. "Snap out of it. We don't want you to look like a dumbass on your first day, now do we?"

Roxas pulled his arm out of the redhead's grasp and slipped the straps of his backpack over his arms. He was about to say something when Axel started calling to someone.

"Hey, Larxene! Over here!"

Demyx went a little pale as a blonde girl with electric blue eyes walked up. "Hey, Ax. Demyx, you look like you just saw a ghost," She looked over at Roxas and smiled. "Well, aren't you a little looker. I betcha at least half the girls and even some of the boys are gonna be just _drooling_ over you."

Roxas turned scarlet and Axel said, "Larxene, this is Roxas, my new roommate. Today is his first day at a really big high school like this, so take it easy on him."

"Oh, sorry," Her grin shifted to a winning smile. "I didn't know. Oh, crap, I gotta go. Marluxia just got here. Bye, Axel. Lighten up, Demyx. Hope you like it here, Roxas." She waved and then hurried off towards a boy with what seemed to be pink hair.

"She seems nice," Roxas mused. "Who's Marluxia?"

Axel laughed. "Larxene, nice? She's about as nice as a rabid tyrannosaurus rex with a stomachache. She's a hell of a lot prettier than one, though," He paused, eyes narrowing. "That pink-haired asshole talking to Larxene is Marluxia. He also happens to be her boyfriend."

Demyx wrinkled his nose. "Marly's a douchebag."

"Tell me how you really feel! What's he ever done to you?" Roxas was taken aback by this open show of hostility.

Axel's eyes blazed with anger. "He stole Larxene from me because he thought I wasn't good enough for her. He's a selfish, conceited, girl-snatching son of a bitch. Come on, let's go." The redhead stalked off, shoulders jutting back due to his aggressive stance. Demyx sighed and followed him. By the time Roxas recovered from his shock, he had to run to catch up with the two boys.

"A-Axel, I'm sorry if I-" The blonde began, but Axel waved a hand to forestall any apologies.

"Just leave it. I shouldn't have blown up like that. If Larxene is happy with Marluxia, than good for her. All that matters is that she's happy…"

Demyx punched his shoulder, grinning. "C'mon, Ax, cheer up. You'll find someone else." The look the redhead shot him begged to differ.

The three boys went into the main building and stopped in the lobby, full of students milling around before class started.

"Alright. Where're you headed, blondie?" Axel crossed his arms over his chest.

Roxas pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and opened it. He scanned his schedule for a moment before he looked back up. "AP Chemistry with Dr. Steele."

Axel grinned as if he knew something the blonde boy did not and said, "This is where we part ways, for now at least. Demyx, you're on the second floor now, right? Show Mr. Vertically Challenged where the Iceman's room is, will you?" Demyx nodded, and Roxas stuffed the paper back into his pocket. Axel turned to go, and then turned back for a moment, adding, almost as an afterthought, "And Roxas? Relax. Just because this school is big doesn't mean it's gonna eat you alive. Got it memorized?" He gave him a strange, two-fingered gesture reminiscent of a salute, and then he disappeared into the crowd.

Demyx poked Roxas's arm. "Let's go. Don't wanna be late." When Roxas didn't respond or move, Demyx grabbed him and dragged him upstairs.

"This is it," The two blonde boys stopped in front of a door with a nameplate on it reading "Dr. Steele." Demyx motioned for Roxas to enter. "Come on, I gotta get to class."

"Why did you call him 'the Iceman' earlier?" Roxas asked.

Demyx grimaced. "You'll see." Before Roxas could inquire further, he vanished.

Though he wasn't a very religious person, Roxas said a silent prayer. _Please, let things go okay. More chaos is the absolute last thing I need right now_.

To his great dismay, he realized all of the seats but one next to a sullen boy with steel blue hair were taken as he walked into the classroom. The two-person desk also happened to be the one closest to the teacher's desk. Left with no other choice, Roxas picked his way through the maze of desks and backpacks and stopped by the unoccupied seat. "Mind if I sit here?"

The boy seated at the desk looked up. His long bangs obscured the majority of the right side of his face. The one visible pale blue eye seemed to be appraising Roxas. After a few moments of silence, he responded, "Go ahead."

Just as Roxas was sitting down, a man with long blonde hair swept into the room. He went to the front of the room and said, "Be quiet while I take role." The students instantly fell silent, and Roxas now understood why Axel and Demyx had called Dr. Steele "the Iceman." The room temperature seemed to have dropped several degrees when he entered. He began to read names off a piece of paper in his hands, and as each student's name was called, they raised their hand in acknowledgement.

"Zexion Glass," called Dr. Steele. The boy sitting next to Roxas raised his hand for a moment, and then he went back to reading the book in his other hand.

Roxas surveyed the rest of the room as the teacher continued to call role. Two boys in the back of the room, one with spiky brown hair and the other with long silver hair, were holding hands under their table. _Sora and Riku were their names, right?_

"Roxas Sinclair," The blonde boy looked up and raised his hand. Dr. Steele narrowed his acid green eyes. "So you're the new one. Alright. Namine Swift."

Roxas turned his gaze to the girl who raised her hand in response to the name. She wore a crisp white blouse and dark blue jeans, faded with age. As she lowered her hand, she brushed a few stray locks of her blonde hair out of her eyes. Before he could look away, Namine turned and locked eyes with him. Blue eyes stared into blue. Roxas was entranced. _They're like the ocean_… And then she smiled, the corners of her pale lips ascending to form a graceful arc that made the blonde boy's heart skip a beat. Time froze for that fleeting instant, and then Namine looked away and the spell was broken.

That smile lingered in the back of Roxas's mind until the bell signaled the end of first period.

~::~

Roxas scoured the name plates on the doors as he hurried down the hall. He had under a minute to find his class, or he would be late for English. He saw a flash of red out of the corner of his eye, and someone grabbed him and pulled him into a classroom milliseconds before the bell rang.

"In here, dumbass. Demyx and I saved you a seat," Axel led Roxas to a group of desks in the back corner of the room. After the blonde boy sat down, he realized Zexion was also seated there.

"Hi," Roxas said to him. "I know you."

"You do?" Demyx raised an eyebrow.

Zexion nodded. "We sat together last period. He seemed to be enamored with that blonde girl… Namine, I believe?"

Axel's eyes narrowed. "Namine Swift?"

Roxas blushed. "Um… Maybe." _He doesn't look happy_.

"If I recall correctly, she gave him that innocent little angelic smile of doom. I think this boy is a goner, Axel."

The redhead locked eyes with Roxas, and the blonde winced, so intense was the fiery green gaze. "Looks like Little Miss Perfection's got her eyes on you. You better run for the hills, because she's a heartbreaking bitch."

Roxas jumped to her defense, though he didn't know the exact reason for his flaring temper. "She just smiled at me! Can't someone smile without an asshole like you jumping down their throat?"

Axel, Demyx, and Zexion all looked at each other, and Axel made a slashing motion across his throat. "The Roxas we knew is no longer with us."

"What do you mean, the Roxas you knew? None of you have known me for more than a day!"

Axel smirked for an instant before adopting an air of innocence. "Did you hear something?" he said to Demyx and Zexion. "Did one of you say something, or am I imagining things?"

"Very funny, Flamesilocks," Roxas sneered at the redhead and then directed his attention to the teacher, who had just entered the room. He was surprised to see that Mr. Knightley was not an older man like he had expected, but in his mid-twenties. His white-blonde hair was cut very short, revealing the multiple piercings on his ears. His mouth was surrounded by a small goatee and mustache. Roxas heard a few of the girls giggle and, judging by the half-smile on Mr. Knightley's face, surmised that this teacher was a flirt.

Roxas looked back at the three boys seated around him to find Axel copying the look on Mr. Knightley's face, Demyx swooning theatrically, and Zexion looking unsure whether to laugh or roll his eyes. Shaking his head, he directed his gaze to Mr. Knightley once more. He was hard put not to burst out laughing when he realized that the teacher had a British accent. _My English teacher is actually English_. The irony was delicious.

"Take out your textbooks and turn to page three hundred and ninety-four," Mr. Knightley was saying. "Today we'll be reading passages from Shakespeare's _Romeo and Juliet_ and analyzing their meanings." Roxas glanced at Axel when he made a small sound in the back of his throat. A spark of interest flashed across his green eyes. The rest of the class, excluding Axel and Zexion, groaned amongst the slam of heavy books on desks and the rustling of pages.

Mr. Knightley continued his instructions. "Read the prologue, the introduction to Act II, the whole balcony scene, and Act III Scene Two. This is a group assignment, so you can read it out loud if you wish." He went to sit down, and the class erupted into lines of the play and arguments over who would read which parts.

"Let's start with the balcony scene. That'll take the longest," Axel smirked as he directed his gaze at Roxas. "I vote we give our handsome little zombie the part of Juliet."

"Why me? You'd make the better girl," the blonde hissed. Demyx burst out laughing at this. Zexion bit his lip to stop from doing the same.

Axel bristled. His red hair, pulled back into a ponytail, seemed to fluff up like a cat's fur when it was angry or scared. "Says you! At least I'm taller than five-foot-five," His eyes flicked to the door behind Roxas. A smirk curled his lips. "What light through yonder doorway breaks? It is the East, and Namine is the sun!"

Roxas whipped his head around and, sure enough, the pretty blonde girl had just walked in. She caught sight of Roxas and smiled before walking over to Mr. Knightley's desk. Roxas turned bright red as Axel wolf-whistled and Demyx elbowed him in the ribs. He looked down at his desk to hide his blush.

"Don't look now, blondie. Here she comes."

Roxas felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. "You're Roxas, right?"

He looked up and their eyes met. _Those eyes… They're beautiful…_ It took Roxas several tries to find his voice. "Yeah. I'm Roxas."

"Dr. Steele told me to give you these," She handed him a few sheets of paper. "They're the notes and a couple of worksheets from the beginning of the section we're on."

"Okay. Thanks," Roxas gave her a small smile and his heart skipped a beat when she smiled back.

"See you later, Roxas," With one last smile, Namine walked out the door, leaving the scent of vanilla and oranges behind her.

"Parting is such sweet sorrow that I shall say goodnight till it be morrow!" Axel's dramatic deliverance of the line and Demyx and Zexion's laughter jarred the blonde boy back to reality.

"Man, you shoulda seen your face when she walked in," Demyx grinned. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone look that shocked or embarrassed in my life!"

"Shut up!" Roxas turned red again.

"Oh, the little lover boy's blushing," Axel's tone dripped sarcasm. "You and Namine are so cute it makes me want to puke my guts out."

Roxas didn't bother to reply. Axel was pissed off, and further aggravating the redhead wouldn't do him any good. He _did_ have to sleep in the same room as him. _Axel is a first-class douchebag._ He opened his text book and began reading, ignoring the others. He registered that they were talking about him, but Roxas just continued reading, never saying a word in his defense. Left to do all the work himself, he let his anger smolder into glowing coals.

Before he knew it, the bell rang, and there was a flurry of activity as the students scrambled to gather their books and papers. Roxas stuffed his things into his backpack, slung it over his shoulder, and followed Axel, Demyx, and Zexion out into the hallway.

Out of nowhere, Axel and Demyx burst into song. "How do you solve a problem like Roxas?" they warbled in high falsetto voices. "How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?"

A tall, muscular boy with blonde hair spikier than Roxas's looked over at them from his locker, eyes wide with surprise. Demyx waved his hands frantically. "Sorry Cloud! Not you! It's a song!"

Zexion sighed, a half-smile flitting across his face. "You two are silly. I'll see you later," He disappeared into a classroom nearby. Soon after, Demyx also said goodbye and headed into another classroom.

_Aw, shit_. Roxas was left alone with Axel. _I bet he's still pissed at me. I hope we don't have any more classes together._

"What've you got next?" the redhead asked.

Roxas consulted his schedule. "P.E."

Axel smirked. "Me too."

_Somebody kill me now._

~::~

Roxas's first day at Traverse High was, almost literally, hell. After P.E., he got a short break from Axel, but lunch and the last two periods of the day were shared with the redhead. It was made even more awkward because of the fact that Namine was also in his last two classes. In AP History, he had only Axel to talk to, though not much conversing went on. Namine sat three desks away next to a red-haired girl- _Kairi_- and the two glanced at Roxas and giggled. In choir, Demyx rejoined them, but Namine, a soprano, sat far away. Axel sat next to Roxas, on the dividing line between the baritones and the tenors, and Demyx sat on Axel's other side. Little talking went on due to the singing. Axel, however, gave Roxas several looks that made up for any unspoken words, the most venomous of which came towards the end of class.

After the teacher told the class that they could put their music folders away, Namine walked up to Roxas, blushing, handed him a small piece of paper, and then ran back to Kairi, giggling. He stared at the neat handwriting, stunned speechless. _She wants me to text her. She wants to talk. She thinks… I'm cute?_

Roxas looked up to see Axel staring at him. Accompanied by hands jammed in his pockets and narrowed eyes, the look the redhead gave him sent shivers down his spine. Averting his gave, Roxas exited the room when the bell rang and walked to the bus as fast as possible, Axel's eyes burning holes in the back of his head.

The bus ride itself was only tolerable because Demyx created a barrier between the redhead and the blonde, and Roxas remembered that his iPod was stowed in the front pocket of his backpack. Not in the mood for classical, he let louder rock music drown out his anger and the sound of Axel's voice. Roxas avoided looking anywhere but out the window for fear of catching Axel's eye. Even when the bus stopped and several passengers filed out the door, he kept his head down and his eyes on the ground.

"We're home, Mom," Axel called as they entered the von Fusen house through the garage. Mrs. von Fusen stuck her head out of the living room door and smiled. "We're gonna put our stuff upstairs, and then you can give Roxas the talk."

Roxas hurried after the redhead as he walked upstairs to their room. "What do you mean, 'the talk'? You don't mean _the_ talk, do you? Should I be scared?" Axel only smirked in response.

The two boys dumped their backpacks on their respective bunk beds and then made their way back to the living room. Roxas sat down across from Mrs. von Fusen and Axel, unsure what the smirk lingering on the redhead's lips meant.

"Alright, Roxas," The blonde winced at Mrs. von Fusen's serious tone. "I've got some rules I'd like to inform you of." Axel and his mother glanced at each other. For a few moments, neither of them said anything. Then, with completely straight faces, mother and son said in unison, "The third floor corridor is off limits, if you value your life." The two proceeded to burst out laughing, leaving Roxas in utter confusion. It took several minutes for them to stop laughing and regain their composure.

"No, really. There are a few rules I expect my child- or in your case, Roxas, my best friends' child- to live by. No drugs, keep your grades up, no staying out past eleven o' clock, and most of all, no inappropriate behavior. Hopefully you know what I mean," Mrs. von Fusen then turned to Axel. "Anything you'd like to add?"

"Yeah. No cussing on Sundays. We're a good Christian family," Roxas couldn't help but catch the note of sarcasm in Axel's voice. "And speaking of keeping grades up, Roxas and I have homework to do."

"But why-" Roxas began to protest. Axel grabbed him and dragged him up to their room.

"If we don't do our homework, we'll fail school. If we fail school, we're breaking the rules. Broken rules equal one very pissed mother, and that is _never_ good. Got it memorized?"

"Yeah, I got it. My mom is just as bad."

Axel, who had let go of the blonde once they entered the bedroom, froze mid-step. Roxas realized what he had said a split second later and tears sprung to his eyes. He swallowed hard, fighting to keep them from overwhelming him. He'd cried enough for a lifetime at the funeral and he didn't plan on looking like a crybaby in front of Axel. The redhead already made fun of him enough without him crying like a little girl. A single tear slid down his cheek. _Shit._

Axel jammed his fists in his pockets and looked down at his feet. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you…" His voice trailed off. The redhead looked up, opened his mouth to speak, and then stared at his feet once more. "There's one of my personal rules I forgot to tell you."

Without warning, he stepped forwards and gave Roxas a rough hug. He whispered something in his ear and then hurried out of the room, leaving his words echoing in Roxas's mind.

"Rule number three: Once family, always family. If you need me, I'll be here. Got it memorized?"


	2. Chapter Two: Surprises

**Author's Note:** I know I'm updating really fast on this. I'll admit that I've been holding out on posting anything. I've already written the first three chapters and I'm working on the fourth. After the next chapter is up, though, it'll take me quite a bit longer to get chapters finished. Don't get too annoyed if it takes me a long time... Without further ado, chapter two! (Hehe, that rhymed.)

~::~

"She's trying to reel you in like the stupid little fish that you are. She's selling you a fake persona of herself just so she can mess with your head. Too bad she's such a good actress… If it wasn't for that, it would all just be another shitty advertisement."

A week had passed since Roxas had arrived in the von Fusen household bearing more weight on his shoulders than just his suitcases. Axel's strange show of compassion had gone unremembered and unexplained by the redhead due to Roxas's infatuation with Namine, which the blonde boy denied even existed. The ever-wise Zexion informed Roxas that he was indeed obsessed with the pretty blonde girl.

At lunch that day, Namine beckoned Roxas over to the table she shared with Kairi, Riku, Sora, Cloud, and a girl with long black hair who he had only met once before. He recalled that her name was Tifa.

"Hey, are you free tonight?" Namine asked when he arrived at their table. Her ocean blue eyes stared up at Roxas, innocent and pure.

Axel's warning resonated in the back of his mind, but the blonde boy ignored it. "I should be, yeah. Why?"

Namine flipped her hair out of her face, giving him a smile that made his heart stutter. "We're all going to see a movie tonight, and I was just wondering if you wanted to come with us."

Roxas could feel Axel glaring at him three tables away. "I'd love to."

"Great! We'll pick you up around six, okay?"

Roxas nodded and walked back to his own table.

"What did your little Juliet say?" Axel's green eyes were narrowed in annoyance.

_Dick_. "_Namine_ wants me to go to a movie with her and her friends tonight. I said yes. You can deal with it."

Demyx and Zexion, also seated at the table, exchanged worried looks with Axel. The redhead sighed and shook his head. "She's trying to get in your pants, Roxas. What did I tell you about breaking my mom's rules? I believe sex falls under the category of 'inappropriate behavior.'"

"How the hell does going to a movie mean she wants to screw me?"

Zexion closed the book he was reading and looked Roxas dead in the eye. "Anything even vaguely constituting a date equates to sex when Namine is concerned."

Demyx nodded in agreement. "That's how it always starts with her. She smiles that- what was it?- angelic smile of doom, asks the poor bastard out on a date that's not a date, then on a real date. She gets him alone after and then _bam_. They do it and Namine never looks at the guy again."

"You sound like you've had this happen to you before," Roxas glared at Demyx. "You too, Zexion. I think you're just bitter and blowing things way out of proportion."

He jumped backwards when Axel slammed his fist down on the table with a resounding _thunk_. "You. Are. _Impossible_!" the redhead ground out from between gritted teeth. "Why won't you open your damn ears and listen to us? We are _trying_ to help you not get your heart torn to shreds!" Axel grabbed his bag and stormed out of the cafeteria, leaving Roxas staring after him in shock.

Several moments of stunned silence elapsed. Then, Demyx said in a small voice, "Oh shit."

"That's an understatement. I don't think I've ever seen him that livid, except for when Larxene broke up with him for Marluxia," Zexion added, picking his book up again. "I pity you, Roxas."

Now very afraid of the redhead's wrath, Roxas trudged to his AP History class like a condemned man heading for the gallows.

Instead of Axel and an empty desk next to him, Kairi and Namine came to sit by the blonde boy. Roxas noted that the redhead avoided sitting in the desk Namine frequented. Axel acted as if she had some kind of disease.

"Who are you looking at?" He turned to look at Namine when she spoke. "Axel? He's a dick. If I were you, I'd try to associate myself with him as little as possible."

_Funny, he said almost the same thing about you_. "I'll keep that in mind."

Kairi looked a little surprised at Namine's proclamation. "Axel's not all that bad. Whenever Demyx talks about him, he makes it sound like-"

"Trust me, he's an ass," The blonde girl waved a hand, dismissing her friend's protests. "Anyways… Crap, Mr. O'Dell's back."

Their AP History teacher, a broad-shouldered, muscular man with an eye patch over his right eye and a jagged scar on the left side of his face, had returned from making copies of the worksheets the class would be doing for homework. He handed them to Roxas and instructed, "Hand these out." The blonde boy obeyed. He went around the room until only Axel was left.

As he gave the redhead the last worksheet, Axel slipped a folded piece of paper into the pocket of Roxas's hoodie. A somewhat bewildered Roxas returned to his seat and waited a couple of minutes, working on his homework, before taking the paper out of his pocket and unfolding it. He almost fell out of his chair with shock as he read the first three words: "_Roxas, I'm sorry_." _Sorry? He's sorry?_ "_My little outburst earlier was uncalled for. If Namine makes you happy_-" Here, it appeared that Axel had begun to write the word "horny" but had scratched it out and written "happy" instead. "-_then I really have no say in the matter. However, she keeps staring at your butt. Just thought you'd like to know_."

Roxas felt his face turn crimson, and he hid the note before Namine or Kairi could see it. Once his blushed had faded, he glanced at Axel to find him leaning back in his desk, watching Namine out of the corner of his eye. The animosity in his eyes was unmistakable.

Namine wasn't the only one who could be a shitty advertiser.

~::~

Roxas and Axel went home as usual that day. They did their homework and ate dinner. Then Namine and her friends came to pick Roxas up. As the blonde boy hurried down the front steps of the house, he could feel Axel's green gaze piercing him through from where the redhead stood on the doorstep. The sight of Namine's warm, inviting blue eyes once he reached the car made Axel all but forgotten.

"Hey, Roxas!" Namine chirped as he opened the car door. The black van was parked at the end of the driveway. Kairi, in the driver's seat, also greeted him. Sora and Riku were in the backseat, almost silent.

"Hey," Roxas replied as he sat next to Namine. "So what are we going to go see?"

Kairi grinned at him in the rearview mirror. "We have no idea. I guess you'll find out when we get to the theater and decide." She started the car and glanced in the rearview mirror again. This time the red-haired girl pulled a face. "Roxas, whatever you do, don't turn around."

Namine glanced over her shoulder and quickly turned around again, face screwed up in displeasure. "Oh, man. Really, if you value your sanity and innocence, keep your eyes front."

Roxas, of course, looked.

The sight that greeted him did indeed threaten his sanity and innocence. Sora was now sitting in Riku's lap. The two boys' lips were locked together, but it was easy to see their tongues battling in their mouths. Sora had a hand up Riku's shirt, and Riku had a hand down Sora's pants.

Roxas screwed his eyes shut and shuddered as he turned back around. He shook his head, trying to rid himself of the graphic image. "That's gross. Can't they wait until they're alone or something?" he whined. "Seriously. We're in a freaking car."

Namine sighed. "We told you not to look, silly. As for waiting, you try telling them that and see what happens. Besides, it's not like they're going all-out or anything. If Sora and Riku don't think they're acting ridiculously inappropriate, then we poor, innocent bystanders will just have to live with it for a while."

Roxas grimaced. "Great. How long is a while?"

"However long it takes for them to get tired."

_Oh, that's just perfect_.

The two boys in the backseat stayed entwined until Kairi pulled the van into the movie theater parking lot. Roxas tried hard not to pay attention as Sora fixed his tousled hair and Riku wiped his hands on the back of his jeans. Their earlier actions both fascinated and disgusted the blonde boy. Having never had a significant other himself, he only knew about things like that from listening to the stories of others. It made him feel very alone. _Everyone seems to have someone_. _Everyone but me_.

Once Sora and Riku were presentable, everyone clambered out of the car and headed to the ticket booths. While they waiting in line, Riku and Sora held hands. A middle-aged couple and an old woman in the next line over sent them disapproving looks. Roxas could understand why. The sight of two boys holding hands, especially one with multiple piercings and the other in a Pokemon shirt, was not a normal thing for most people.

The old woman clutched at a cross that was strung around her neck on a silver chain. Roxas could hear her muttering under her breath as if she was praying. "Sinful boys…deliver them…going to Hell…"

Riku, standing nearest to her, seemed to hear. He stole a careful glance at her, and proceeded to ignore her. After several minutes of incessant mumbling, however, the silver-haired boy lost his temper. He turned to the old woman and hissed, "I don't mean to sound rude, but will you shut up?"

She looked taken aback by Riku's words. "I was only praying for you and-"

Before Riku or anyone else could say a word, Sora spoke up. "Sorry, ma'am. It's nice of you to pray for us, but we don't really need it. We'd rather go to Hell later than not be able to be with each other now. Love is love no matter what gender. We just love each other a little more."

Stunned silence reigned over the crowd outside the movie theater. Sora's honesty had taken all the wind out of the old woman's sails.

After what seemed like an eternity, everyone resumed whatever they had been doing before the confrontation. Riku and Namine pooled their money and bought all of the tickets. They then headed inside, where Cloud and Tifa were waiting for them. The two of them greeted everyone and then they headed to their movie. The group commandeered the very top row of seats.

As soon as the movie started, Riku and Sora entwined themselves as best as they could while separated by the armrest of the movie theater seats. Cloud and Tifa soon followed suit, although they were a bit more discreet. The people seated lower down in the theater didn't even seem to notice. Kairi, Roxas, and Namine were the only ones out of their group that really watched the movie. Namine, however, kept inching as close as she could to Roxas, even managing to press her arm against his until he jerked away when something exploded on screen. The movie ended an hour and a half later. Sora, Riku, Cloud, and Tifa raced to fix tousled clothes and hair as the lights lining the room brightened. Namine and Kairi glanced at each other and rolled their eyes. Roxas simply ignored the four of them, not wanting to even think about what had happened while the lights were out. _I bet it was just like in the car earlier. I still don't get why they can't wait._

Cloud and Tifa said their goodbyes and headed off in a different direction once the group got outside. Roxas followed the remainder of the group back to Kairi's black van, and climbed in last. Sora and Riku seemed to be done making out for the time being because Sora was chattering away to the silver-haired boy, who listened with rapt attention. _Oh, thank gosh. If they were still going at it now, I think I would puke. And that would not be flattering in front of Namine…_ He glanced up at the pretty blonde girl to find her smiling at him. He blushed to the tips of his ears and looked away.

Other than Sora and Riku conversing in hushed tones in the backseat, the ride back to the von Fusens' house was quiet and uneventful. Kairi parked at the end of the driveway and unlocked the car doors to allow Roxas to get out. He was about to do so when Namine stopped him.

"Bye, Roxas," she whispered, and then pecked him on the cheek.

_Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. Did she really just kiss me? _Roxas thought his heart would stop. _Oh my gosh_. Too stunned to respond, he stumbled out of the car and floated up to the front door. He managed to call a greeting as he entered the house, and then glided up the stairs to the room he shared with Axel. The redhead glanced at Roxas and then looked back down at the notebook he was writing in. "You're back on time. Good to know you didn't take any unexpected detours."

Roxas glared at him, his good mood crushed. "No, I did not."

"Then why did you walk in here looking like you just got laid?"

The blonde boy turned scarlet. "Namine kissed me." He looked down at his feet.

"On the lips?"

"On the cheek." Roxas traced the spot where she had kissed him with his finger.

Axel laughed, a sound that was devoid of any real mirth. "I guess she decided to start small for once. She must really like you… Maybe she's as obsessed with you as you are with her."

"I'm not obsessed!"

"Denial is a terrible thing."

Roxas ignored the redhead, but Namine and the kiss lingered in the back of his mind until, hours later, he finally fell asleep.

~::~

"Rise and shine, blondie!"

Roxas jolted awake as a pillow slammed into his face. Realizing that Axel was the culprit, he groaned and rolled over so his back was to the obnoxious redhead. Pillows continued to assault him until, finally, he got fed up and threw one back.

Axel batted it away and grinned. "Good. You're awake now. Mom says breakfast is ready."

Roxas sat up, being careful not to bump his head on the ceiling. He panicked when he saw the morning sunlight streaming in through the windows. "What are we still doing here? We're gonna be late for school!"

Axel almost fell off the bunk bed ladder, he laughed so hard. "You genius, it's Saturday!"

The blonde boy buried his face in one of the pillows Axel had thrown at him to hide his reddened cheeks. "Shuddup," he protested, voice muffled by the pillow. "Iz too early fo' thiz."

The redhead chuckled again. "Not my fault. Now, come on. We have important business to attend to today, and the faster we eat breakfast, the faster we can get to it."

Roxas dropped the pillow and scrambled down the ladder after Axel. "Important business? Like what?"

"You'll see."

Axel opened the door to his room, and a wave of delicious smells washed over the two boys. Roxas could smell pancakes, eggs, bacon, toast, and hashbrowns from where he stood at the top of the stairs. His mouth began to water.

Axel scratched the back of his head as he descended the staircase. "Wow. Mom must be in a really good mood. Maybe she finished something way before the deadline…" he muttered, half to himself.

"Deadline?"

"She's a writer," Axel explained as they entered the kitchen. "And forget one deadline; she must've finished two projects ahead of schedule. She's humming, too."

Mrs. von Fusen was standing in front of the stove with her back to them. Her dark reddish-brown hair, which was usually pulled into a tight ponytail, fell down her back. She hummed a jaunty tune as she tended the food.

"Morning, Mom," Axel called.

She turned around and smiled at the two boys. "Good morning!"

Axel walked over to her and hugged her. Standing next to his mother, Roxas realized that the redhead looked like a male version of her, except for the fact that Axel was six inches taller.

"So what's the occasion? You haven't cooked like this in ages," Axel glanced at the stove.

Mrs. von Fusen's smile widened. "I finished two projects _and_ your father got a raise."

Right then Mr. von Fusen walked in, looking as happy as his wife. "All right. Forget what I told you last night, Axel, we've had a change of plans."

Axel looked stunned. "Wait a second. I thought it was really-"

"Don't worry. We can take care of it later," Roxas felt as confused as Axel looked. "We've got other stuff to do first. Now, this food smells delicious, and I'm hungry. Let's eat!" Mrs. von Fusen loaded four plates with food and poured them all a glass of milk. Then they tucked in with gusto.

With a pang Roxas realized that that many of his Saturdays before his arrival at the von Fusen house had been spent much in the same way, eating, talking, and preparing for the rest of the day. _Why does this feel so normal without my parents? It shouldn't. Mom and Dad should be here. Why are they gone?_

"Hey, your food's gonna get cold if you stare off into space like that," Axel waved a hand in front of Roxas's face. "Hurry up. The rest of us are almost done." Roxas blinked and obeyed the redhead, clearing his plate within minutes. He didn't really taste the last half of his breakfast because he was still preoccupied with his thoughts.

"You'd better go get dressed, Roxas," Mrs. von Fusen took all of their plates to the sink. "And if you or Axel wants to bring anything, you'd better get that, too."

The two boys nodded and returned to their room. Roxas grabbed a pair of what he hoped were clean blue jeans, a hoodie, and an undershirt out of the closet and carried them to the bathroom to change.

"Hey, I just took a shower a few minutes ago, so the floor may be wet in there," Axel called from where he was standing by the dresser.

The floor _was_ wet. Roxas grimaced as water squished between his toes. He closed the door behind him and tiptoed over to the mat in front of the mirror. He pulled off his pajama shirt to find a large bruise on his right shoulder. _I must've rolled over and hit the wall last night. I wonder how I didn't notice_. Marveling at his own apparent lack of pain receptors, he pulled on the undershirt and hoodie and exchanged his pajama pants for the blue jeans. Roxas paused as he went to style his hair into his usual spiky hairdo. Remembering how alike Axel and his mother looked, he scrutinized his own face, looking for signs of his parents. _I look like my dad. But I've got Mom's eyes. And her height_. Roxas resented the fact that he was so short, but unless he wanted to wear four-inch platform boots, he was stuck with his diminutive size. He shook his head to rid himself of the thoughts of his deceased parents and fixed his hair.

Right as he was finishing, someone knocked on the bathroom door. "Come on, we're leaving in a couple minutes."

"Coming!" the blonde boy called. He cleaned up the counter as fast as he could and grabbed his pajamas. He re-entered the bedroom, threw the bundle of clothes on his rung of the bunk beds, and proceeded to jam his feet into his socks and chessboard-patterned shoes. He fished his cell phone and iPod out of his backpack and stuffed them in his pockets.

"Ready?" Roxas turned to look at Axel, who was leaning against the wall next to the door leading downstairs. The blonde nodded. "Good. Let's go."

The two boys headed down the staircase to meet Axel's parents by the garage door. "Is everyone here? Yes? Good!" Mr. von Fusen said. "Let's head out." Everyone followed him out into the garage and got into the car.

Axel began questioning his father the minute they pulled out of the garage. "So where are we going? If we're not gonna do what you told me we would do yesterday, then what the hell _are_ we doing?"

Roxas spoke up. "What were you planning before? I'm confused!"

With this, Axel and Roxas both started berating Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen, demanding to know what was going on and where they were being taken. Axel's parents only glanced at each other and grinned. Axel and Roxas were fed up with how childish the two adults in the front seat were acting. They refused to disclose any information on the subject of what was going on.

"Seriously, where the _hell_ are we going?" Axel asked for the millionth time, but in vain. His mother turned up the radio and pretended not to hear while his father commented on the sunny weather. Roxas had given up beleaguering the redhead's parents ten minutes ago and resigned himself to staring out the window, lost in his thoughts.

Five minutes later, Mr. von Fusen pulled into the parking lot of a large strip mall and proclaimed, "We're here!"

Axel and Roxas glanced at each other. This was the first time in the week they had known each other that they agreed on anything.

"Your parents are nuts," Roxas muttered to the redhead as they followed said adults towards the buildings.

Axel jammed his hands in his pockets. "No kidding. They owe me big time now, too."

"Why's that?"

"The thing my dad said to forget about was me getting a guitar. I've wanted to learn to play for years, but we've never bought one. We were gonna get one today."

Roxas didn't know what to say to that. Lucky for him, his phone buzzed, giving him a perfect excuse to not say anything. Namine had sent him a text. "_Hey, cutie!_"

Roxas blushed to the tips of his ears despite the fact that she wasn't even with him. Axel saw this and scowled, but the blonde boy ignored him and replied, "_Hey yourself. What's up?_"

"If that's Namine, I'm gonna-" Axel's mother cut him off as she grabbed his arm.

"We're going left, honey, please pay attention."

"Well, if you would tell me where we're going, then I wouldn't go the wrong way."

"Lucky for you, we've arrived at destination number one."

Roxas and Axel looked up at the sign of the large store in front of them. Axel's mouth dropped open, and the blonde boy made a small sound of surprise. Destination number one was the biggest music store in the county.

Axel turned to his father, eyes blazing with excitement. "But I thought you said we weren't getting the guitar today!"

Mr. von Fusen grinned. "Sorry if I scared you. I wanted to see your face when we surprised you." The four of them entered the store together.

Axel sighed in contentment. "I love music stores.

Roxas would have burst out laughing at the face the redhead was making had his cell phone not buzzed. It was another text from Namine that read: "_Homework. Ugh. You?_"

Roxas paused before he replied, unsure whether or not to say he was with Axel or lie and say he was somewhere else. He opted for the latter after a moment of careful consideration. An angry Namine was the last thing he wanted right now. "_Same, unfortunately_." Unable to think of anything to add, he sent the message.

"Roxas, come on!" The blonde boy stuffed his phone back in his pocket and hurried to catch up to the von Fusens, who were crowding around a display of high-end electric guitars. The four of them went around the store looking at every single guitar in the place, but Roxas noticed that every so often Axel's gaze would drift to an old, sapphire blue acoustic hanging on the "Used" racks near the back of the store. Before Roxas could ask why, the redhead led the group to the rack the blue guitar was on, pointed to it, and proclaimed, "That's the one I want."

Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen glanced at each other in confusion. "Don't you want a _new_ guitar?" Axel's mother said. "Money's not an issue…"

"That's not why. I like the color of this one," the redhead explained. "And this guitar… it has character. I like that, too."

Mr. von Fusen shrugged when Axel's mother shot him a questioning look. "Our son has spoken. I see nothing wrong with that."

Roxas had never seen anyone smile as big as Axel did when his parents bought him that guitar. He found himself questioning the notion that money couldn't buy happiness.

Guitar in hand and grinning wider than the Grand Canyon, Axel led the way out of the store. His father carried a bag containing all the accessories Axel had insisted he would need. The redhead would have kept leading the group had he not realized that he didn't know where they were going next.

"Peggy, take the boys to destination number two while I put these in the car," Axel made a face that was almost resentful as his father took the case the guitar was in from him. "I'll catch up in a bit."

Roxas noticed the secretive smile exchanged between Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen, but decided not to say anything. _They sure do love secrecy. Good thing my parents aren't-… weren't like that_. The blonde boy shook his head and cleared his throat. _Stupid_. He followed Axel and Mrs. von Fusen down the sidewalk, struggling to keep his mind on the present.

Without warning his cell phone started ringing. Roxas jumped, startled, and pulled it out. "Hello?"

"Roxas? Hey, it's Namine."

Roxas took a couple of deep breaths in an attempt to calm his racing heart. "Hey, what's up?"

Axel dropped back a step or two as Namine spoke again. "Can you hang out today? If you've finished your homework, that is."

Axel glanced over his shoulder at Roxas, eyes narrowed. The blonde boy got the message. "I'm sorry, I can't. I've got a lot to do."

"Oh, okay," Namine sounded disappointed. "Maybe some other time, then. Bye."

"Yeah, maybe. Bye."

Right before Roxas hung up, he thought he heard a male voice on the other end say, "You sure know how to have fun, babe."

Axel must have heard it too, because his eyes narrowed even more. "Sounds like another poor bastard just fell to the little witch."

Roxas was about to reply when Mrs. von Fusen stopped in front of another large store. "This is it!" It was a pet store.

"Are you kidding…?" Axel looked like he was about to faint from sheer happiness. Mrs. von Fusen grinned and shook her head. The redhead ran into the store gleefully. _What. The. Shit._ A very confused Roxas followed.

"We're headed towards the back," Axel's mother called to her son, who was rushing ahead. "But will you _please_ slow down? The animals aren't going anywhere."

Axel stopped in his tracks and waited for them to catch up. "Sorry. I'm just excited!"

The three of them walked at a much slower pace in the direction Mrs. von Fusen had indicated. Axel's father managed to catch up with them about halfway through the store. "Judging by the look on your face, you've figured out where we're here," he said to Axel.

"He may have, but I'm still clueless!" Roxas whined.

Axel turned red. "Um… Well… I…" Roxas had never seen him like this before. Axel took a deep breath before continuing. "I want to get a cat. Maybe even a kitten." The blonde boy burst out laughing. "Tell anyone and I will throw you off the next available balcony." That shut Roxas up. _Duly noted, Princess_.

The back of the pet store was covered in large cages, stacked three or four high. Axel led them to the right side, which were the cages containing the cats. The redhead knelt down by one of the cages and peered inside. Roxas peeked over his shoulder to see what he was doing. Axel stretched out a hand and touched the bars on the cage. Three kittens bounded forwards and started meowing, wanting to be petted.

One of the store employees nearby noticed and walked over to them. "Those little guys are rescues," she said, glancing down at the cage. "The other seven or eight cages around them are too."

Axel stood up and inspected all the cages. "All of them?"

The woman nodded and unlocked one of the cages next to her. She carefully picked up the tiny kitten inside. "We just saved this little guy last week. The poor thing was just wandering around by the side of a road. We couldn't find any means of identification, so we took him in." She went on to explain the stories of the other rescues to Axel. Roxas didn't pay much attention. Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen were discussing something in hushed tones a few feet away.

Axel began laughing all of a sudden. Roxas turned to see a small tabby kitten in his hands, licking his nose with a tiny pink tongue. Roxas couldn't help but smile. The employee chuckled and took the kitten back. "She sure seems to like you," she said. "Do you know which one you want?"

Axel glanced up at one cage whose occupants the employee had not spoken about. "What about that one?"

"I don't think you'll want him…" The woman looked hesitant. "He came from an abusive household, and he'll bite you if you get too close."

She and Roxas were both surprised when the redhead asked, "Can I take him out?"

"I-I don't think… You might get…" she stuttered. She eventually broke down under Axel's imploring green gaze and opened the cage. "Please, be careful."

Axel and Roxas both peered into the cage, though the blonde kept his distance. A pair of yellow eyes gleamed in the shadows at the back of the cage. The cat crept forwards into the light, revealing pitch black fur. Axel stretched out a hand, and the animal bared its fangs in a feral snarl.

Roxas jumped back in alarm. "Axel, I think you should leave it alone…"

Axel ignored him and stretched his hand out further. The black cat sprang forwards and sank its teeth into his hand. Roxas and the pet store employee both started panicking, and when Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen realized what happened, they did too. Only Axel stayed calm, not even seeming to register the fact that he had been bitten.

Roxas calmed upon seeing this and watched, fascinated, as the cat drew back and started licking the bite marks on Axel's hand. The black cat seemed almost ashamed that he had bitten the redhead.

Everyone else looked flabbergasted at the strange sight. Axel took the cat into his arms and turned to them. "I'll take him, he said, smiling as the cat licked his cheek. "His name… is Salvation."

~::~

The black cat Salvation, now nicknamed Sal, seemed to like his new home. In his first week at the von Fusen house, the only major disruption to the normal routine was Sal trying to steal the salmon Mrs. von Fusen was cooking straight off the stove. Since then, fish had been strictly banned from the house.

Roxas kept quiet about the whole thing being Axel's idea whenever they talked about Sal with their friends. The redhead spun a convincing lie that his parents had gone and bought the black cat without his knowledge. Roxas could tell that Zexion didn't buy this, but the falsified account seemed to have fooled Demyx.

Despite the amusement this gave Roxas, the start of his third week at Traverse High brought an unexpected and unwanted surprise: Axel and he were supposed to write an English paper together.

_Bullshit. We're both gonna fail. Mr. Knightley's nuts_.

"Uh-oh, it's the English paper of certain doom!" Demyx joked. "I think the world's gonna end."

"No, but Mr. Knightley's life might," Zexion's dark humor coaxed a small chuckled from Roxas's throat. Axel, however, was fuming, and he looked ready to do just what Zexion had implied he might.

"Frigging stupid Brit," the redhead muttered, his pencil tearing tiny holes in his paper as he scribbled the guidelines for the paper down. "He only put us together because he thinks living together makes us like each other."

"Oh, but _big brother_-" Roxas put on the most babyish face he could muster. "-don't you _love_ me?"

"Hell no. Get lost, you creep."

This seemed to lessen the tension crackling between the two boys. They were laughing too hard to even try to be angry at each other or their teacher. A warning glance from Mr. Knightley silenced the boys. Axel flipped him the bird the next time he wasn't looking, earning smothered giggles from several surrounding students.

"Axel!" The redhead turned to look at a girl behind him with long brown bangs and a braid. "You sure don't look happy."

Axel grimaced. "I didn't expect the whole partner thing. You know I like working alone," He glanced pointedly at Roxas. "Did you need something?"

The brown-haired girl pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to him. "Larxene told me to give you this. I swear, it's always 'Aerith, give him this, give him that, oh, Aerith, tell him I need to talk to him!' I feel like a carrier pigeon or something."

Axel chuckled. "Thank you. You should be paid for your courier services."

Aerith grinned wistfully. "If only." She then turned around to get back to her work.

Roxas watched with mild interest as Axel read the note. The redhead's face went from elation to concern to outright fury. He crumpled the note in his fist, gritting his teeth.

_What the hell is wrong with him? What did Larxene say to him? I want to ask, but I value my life…_

Axel recognized the look on Roxas's face and scowled at him. "Ask me and I'll chuck your sorry little ass out the window."

Zexion sniffed and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Be careful, Roxas. Axel will defenestrate you without a second thought when he's like this."

Before Roxas could as what the hell "defenestrate" meant, Axel turned his gaze on Zexion. "Better believe it, bitch."

Demyx looked nervous. "Don't take it out on us, Axel, okay? We didn't do anything. At least, if we did, we don't know about it."

Axel looked like he was about to bite Demyx's head off, but all of a sudden the fight went out of him. He pulled out his journal and started scribbling something in it. While he did this, he spoke to Roxas. "If we're gonna write a paper together, there are a few things we need to address."

"Like the fact that there's no 'I' in 'teamwork?'" Roxas retorted, already irritated.

"There's also no 'U' or 'we' in 'teamwork.' But there _is_ a 'me.'"

_Touché._


	3. Chapter Three: Complications

**Author's Note:** Okay, kids. This'll be the last rapid update for a while. In reality, it takes me anywhere from a couple of weeks to a month and a half to turn out a chapter I'm happy with. Since summer is just around the corner, I should have a pretty good output rate, but don't get too impatient with me if it takes a while for me to update.

~::~

That night it rained. Roxas wondered if the weather was Axel's fault. Ever since he had read the note from Larxene, the redhead had kept his distance from everyone else. He seemed to be either moping or fuming over the contents of the note. Roxas, however, despite his best attempts, couldn't convince Axel to let him read it.

"It doesn't concern you!" Axel snapped, shoving the blonde boy away from his backpack. "Will you frigging leave me alone?"

Roxas winced and steadied himself. He wanted so badly to yell at or smack some sense into him, but he took several deep breaths and relaxed his tense muscles. "Remember rule number three? 'Once family, always family,' right? I should think that goes both ways."

The fire in Axel's eyes went out and he buried his face in his hands. "Just forget it. Everything will work out like it should eventually, and nothing we do can change that."

Roxas walked over to him and knelt down in front of him so they were roughly on eye level with one another. In the gentlest voice he could muster, he said, "Axel, I just wanna know what happened."

He looked up. Roxas could see angry tears brimming in Axel's emerald eyes between his fingers. "Larxene slept with Marluxia."

Roxas felt like he had just been slammed in the chest with a sledgehammer. "She _what_?" _Holy shit._

"Why do you think I'm so pissed?"

"Well, you and her… You're not together anymore," Roxas knew he was about to enter dangerous territory. "Why do you care so much?"

"Why do you?"

Roxas, already under enough pressure, snapped. He stood and tore Axel's hands off his face, bringing his own close to the redhead's, forcing Axel to look at him by holding his head in place. "I still don't get why you care so much, but you need to frigging _snap out of it_. We have a paper to write by next Wednesday, and I'm not gonna fail because you're incoherently depressed."

Axel shoved his away so hard that Roxas fell on his butt a couple of feet away from the bunk beds. The redhead got up and stood over him, eyes laced with anger, sorrow, and something Roxas couldn't identify. "This is what happens when you fall in love. You better pray to whatever deity you believe in that it never happens to you." Axel then stepped around Roxas, crossed the room in a few strides, entered the bathroom, and slammed the door to the balcony with a sickening thud.

The bottom dropped out of the black clouds choking the sky. The drumming rain seemed to pound in time with the blood rushing through Roxas's veins. How long he sat there on the floor in stunned silence, he did not know.

Lightning flashed and thunder boomed. Roxas shot to his feet, scared out of his wits, and ran to the balcony door. Fearing that the bathroom would flood if he opened the door, he called over the rain, "Get your ass back in here before you get killed, idiot!"

"My ass is just fine where it is!" More thunder exploded overhead. Roxas cowered away from the door. Axel seemed to have changed his mind about staying where he was because he entered the bathroom with as much dignity he could muster. His hair was plastered to his head, so darkened by the rain that it looked like blood in the fluorescent lights. "We never speak of this again, got it memorized?"

A crack of thunder forestalled any response from Roxas. The blonde boy shot out of the bathroom and made a beeline for the closet. Axel followed and caught him by the collar, turning him around. "Stay out of the closet. It's a scary place." His signature smirk had returned.

Roxas smirked back. "You would know."

Axel released him and brushed past the other boy, heading for the dresser. "I might."

"Seriously?" Roxas followed behind him.

"Can we please not talk about this now? The wounds are still raw, and talking about sexual preferences isn't helping," The redhead took a pair of pajama pants and a sweatshirt out of the dresser. "I'm gonna change now. You may as well put your pajamas on too… it's almost eight o' clock. A growing boy like you needs his sleep."

"So do old men like you!" Roxas retorted, trying to hide his smile.

Axel patted his head. "That we do, young'un." He walked into the bathroom, laughing. Roxas did as the redhead suggested, chuckling a little himself as he changed. When the two boys were presentable, Axel returned to the bedroom.

Axel still looked depressed. "Hey, blondie, think you could get my mind off all this shit? Entertain me."

Roxas tripped over his backpack. "You want me to _what_?"

Axel scratched the back of his head. "That… really didn't sound right, did it?"

Roxas righted himself and sighed. "Good going."

The redhead wasn't listening, though. His eyes glinted in a blinding flash of lightning. He turned to Roxas and grinned. "I hope your ninja skills are up to scratch." _He's crazy. Frigging batshit crazy._

"…what?"

Axel quickly explained his plan. They would sneak downstairs, grab some food, hijack the portable DVD player, and get a couple of movies. He led Roxas out of their room and they crept down the stairs in total silence. When they reached the living room, Axel paused and whispered, "Okay. You've gotta roll across the gap between the sofa and the kitchen door when my parents aren't looking."

"Whatever you say, sensei."

Axel crept forwards and somersaulted across the living room to show Roxas how it was done. The blonde followed suit after checking to make sure Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen weren't looking. Axel caught him to stop him from hitting the wall. "You have learned well, young grasshopper," he whispered. The two boys smothered giggles as they snuck into the kitchen.

Together, Roxas and Axel manage to pilfer a box of cookies apiece, half of a cold pizza, two cans of soda, and a jar of pickles.

"Pickles?" Roxas was bewildered.

Axel shrugged. "I like pickles."

The two boys went the long way around the house to get back to their room, stopping to pick up the DVD player and a few movies in the computer room. The instant they closed the door of their room behind them, laughter exploded from the two boys' lungs.

"We actually did it without getting our asses caught!" Axel flopped down on his bed, his face almost as red as his hair.

Roxas nearly dropped the pizza box in his hands. "That was _awesome_!"

Once the two had reined in their laughter, they set up the DVD player at the end of Axel's bed and started bickering over which movie to watch. After five minutes, Axel pulled the "I'm the older one so I get to pick" card and chose _Aladdin_.

"Disney?" Roxas raised an eyebrow.

"Why not?"

They spent the next two hours eating cookies, watching the movie, and talking about anything and everything that came up. Roxas was surprised by how overwhelmingly_ happy _Axel looked. Just minutes before, he had been angry enough to push him to the ground and storm out into a storm. Now he was chattering away like he didn't have a care in the world. _Man, he's really something_.

"Y'know," Axel said to Roxas before they went to sleep, "Maybe having a little brother isn't so bad."

~::~

"What the hell did you do? _What the hell?_" Roxas cowered against the wall next to the dresser. Axel's phoenix figurine lay on the ground in front of him, broken in two. _I didn't mean to. I bumped it_. "You… You _dumbass!_" _He's gonna kill me._

"P-please, just let me explain…" Roxas whimpered. "It wasn't on purpose! I was trying to get Sal out from under the d-dresser, and I bumped it…"

The black cat poked his head out from his new hiding place beneath Axel's bed at the mention of his name. Upon seeing the redhead holding a clenched fist in Roxas's face, Sal decided to trot over and play peacekeeper. He rubbed up against Axel's legs, purring like a miniature lawnmower. Axel looked down at Sal and sighed. "You owe me big time, Roxas."

And so ended three days of amity between the two boys. That day at school, Axel barely looked at Roxas, although he did allow him to sit at the same table. The only time he said anything really substantial to Roxas was during English, and only because they were working on their paper. Even then, Axel spoke in harsh, clipped sentences.

"We're gonna have to finish this by Saturday. No questions asked," Axel didn't look at Roxas as he spoke. He typed with his left hand as he scribbled something on a sheet of notebook paper with his right. "I need an A on this paper, and if I don't get it, I'll kill you."

"Then why don't you do the whole thing yourself?" Roxas glared at him. "It would save us both a lot of grief."

Axel sneered back. "Unfortunately, part of the grade is being able to work together. Like it or not, you're stuck with me."

The redhead didn't say another word to Roxas until lunch. He spoke to Demyx and Zexion, acting as if nothing happened, but Roxas was ignored. The blonde almost liked it better that way. Without Axel watching his every move, he could talk to Namine… or at least admire her from afar.

_I want to talk to her… but I might make myself look like an idiot because I'm so nervous… Shit, here she comes!_

Namine walked over to the lunch table where Roxas was sitting and sat in the empty seat to his right. Her smile made Roxas's prior anger melt away.

"Hey, Roxas. You okay? You look kinda mad."

The blonde boy sighed. "Axel's just being a dickwad."

"I'm sitting right here." It was Roxas's turn to do the ignoring.

"I should've known," Namine's tone dripped venom. Then she brightened considerably. "Well, anyways, there's gonna be a big party at Seifer's place Friday night, and I'd love it if you would go with me. Kairi, Riku, and Sora are gonna be there too."

"Seifer?" The name rang a bell, but Roxas couldn't put a face with it.

"That really stubborn guy who hangs out with the short, quiet girl and the big dude who always says 'y'know,' y'know?" Roxas stared at her blankly. "He always wears a black beanie."

"Oh, yeah. He tried to cheat off me during my Chemistry test last week. "

Namine rolled her eyes. "Typical. So can you go?"

Roxas felt Axel's gaze burning into the back of his head. _Quit staring at me, you asshole. You're not my mother. No one is my mother anymore_. "I guess. Sure. When exactly is it?"

"Seven o'clock. I'll pick you up because you probably don't know were Seifer lives. Or where I live, for that matter."

"I don't. It would be weird if I did." Roxas glared at Axel as the redhead burst into a fit of ill-concealed laughter. Namine glared right along with him.

"What's so funny, firecrotch?" she hissed.

Axel's eyes narrowed. "Nothing much, whore."

"Dick."

"Bitch."

"Ass."

"Slut."

For the next three minutes, Axel and Namine flung insults at each other while Demyx and Roxas looked on in open-mouthed wonder. After the two had run through Roxas's entire repertoire and several insults he had not heard before, Zexion spoke up.

"I commend you on your mastery of profanity," he said in a very distached tone, "but people are staring.

Roxas looked around. True to Zexion's word, five whole tables of people were gawking at them in utter astonishment. He turned red and looked down at his tray of food. Axel and Namine glared at each other without a word until the bell signaling the end of lunch rang. Namine shot up, pulling Roxas with her despite his startled protests.

"Let's go. I'm sick of that douchebag." _Really? I couldn't tell._

Throughout AP History and Choir, Axel wouldn't take his eyes off of Namine or Roxas, depending on whichever one he happened to glance at first when he looked up from his work. There was something troubled behind his emerald gaze, but the only thing Roxas knew was that he absolutely _hated_ Namine for some reason. _Why would he be such a dick to someone? I know he doesn't like me hanging out with her, but damn… That was uncalled for. What's going on?_

When Axel and Roxas got home that day, the blonde boy decided to brave the no man's land of the question that had been stuck in his mind ever since lunch. While they were working on their paper, Roxas asked in the most casual way he could, "You and Namine were sure going at it at lunch today… What's up with that?"

Axel was instantly on his guard, much to Roxas's dismay. He narrowed his eyes and looked straight at the blonde boy, meeting his questioning gaze. "I don't think that really concerns you."

"And why not?"

"You don't have the right to know. When you've earned it, I'll let you know."

The conversation ended there. Axel shut his laptop with a _thunk_, flung his journal on his bed, and stalked off towards the bathroom. Roxas realized that the redhead's phone was going off, but Axel was outside on the balcony before he could even recognize the ring tone. Feeling very nosy all of a sudden, the blonde crept across the room and into the bathroom. He pressed his ear to the balcony door.

Axel was speaking in a tone too low for Roxas to hear what he was saying at first, but his voice soon escalated to something just short of a yell. "…can't you see what you're doing? Don't go and fuck up your life because of some asshole who says he loves you… I don't care! Damn right, I'm jealous. I still love you!" Several moments of tense silence elapsed. "You just… You… You don't fucking _get it!_ Larxene, I would do anything for you… No, I'm not… why would you think…? Please, baby, just give me once more-…" Axel stopped abruptly. His last word was a subdued whimper. "-…chance?"

Roxas jumped as something thudded against the door. The wood beneath his hands quivered. The blonde imagined Axel's angular shoulders shaking, fragile body wrack by quiet sobs. Roxas turned around and leaned his back against the door. Before he could stop himself, he whispered, "Shh… It'll be okay. Shh…"

Much to Roxas's surprise, the shaking stopped. Even more surprising was the whispered response.

"Thank you…"

Roxas gave Axel five minutes to calm down before he said, "Hey, I'm coming outside." The blonde opened the door after he heard Axel shift. The sight of the other boy huddled against the wall of the house, dejected and depressed, made an unexpected bought of anger flare up in the pit of Roxas's stomach.

He'd felt this before, this all-consuming rage that burned away all reason. When the police had told him that his parents had died in a car crash a hundred and fifty miles from where he lived, he hadn't believed them. He'd lashed out at them, calling them names and screaming at the top of his lungs. Hayner, Pence, and Olette, his three best friends since they were infants, had never seen him lose his temper like that. He became a different person in that instance of blind fury. Roxas never wanted to scare anyone like that again.

"Roxas?" Axel's voice, although tired and meek, sliced through the fabric of the blonde's thoughts. He shook himself to clear the haze of anger clouding his judgment.

"Yeah?"

"How much did you hear?"

Roxas sighed and sat down across from Axel. "Everything after you started screaming. Why do you still love Larxene if it makes you hurt like this?"

Axel was silent for several moments. Then he laughed, a dry, harsh sound that cut through the silence like a knife. "You just don't get it, do you? This is what love is, Mr. I've-Never-Had-A-Romantic-Interest. There's a lot of pain sometimes, yeah, but it has to get better in the end, whenever that may be."

"I think you've got a pretty shitty definition of love, Mr. King-of-Emo."

This earned a real laugh from Axel. "That's 'Your Majesty' to you, peasant."

"I dunno, I think I at least rank as a duke or something," Roxas retorted.

"But why would you-…" Axel stopped short. "Oh. Right. Parents. Sorry."

"S'okay. You have enough to worry about without me further complicating things," Roxas sighed. "Seriously, though, reconsider the whole Larxene thing. It's gonna kill you, man."

Axel looked up at him, green eyes red-rimmed and puffy from crying. "I will if you reconsider the whole Namine thing."

Roxas snorted. "No promises."

"Good. Promises aren't worth shit to me any more."

"Well gee, sounds like we won't get anywhere with this."

Axel uncurled and pulled a lighter and a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. He stuck one of them between his lips and lit it, taking a long drag before exhaling a cloud of smoke. "Probably not. But hey, maybe we could come to a compromise," Roxas could heat the old Axel returning, that ever-present biting sarcasm tacked on to the ends of sentences. "Option one, we both try to rationalize our way through our girl problems. Option two, just let things run their course and hope Fate doesn't shit us on…" Axel paused, smirk returning to his lips. "Or we could renounce the company of the female sex entirely and become monks. Personally, I think option three would be most effective. I wonder what I'd look like with that funky haircut those guys have…?"

Roxas stared at Axel in utter disbelief and then burst out laughing when the redhead wiggled his eyebrows.

"What's so funny? I was being serious."

"Your face!" Roxas shook his head. "You looked ridiculous."

"Shut up. I don't look _that_ ridiculous."

Roxas grinned. "Well, at least you're smiling. That's a good start, right?"

Axel exhaled another cloud of smoke. "Hmm. I suppose. Everything has to start somewhere. And speaking of starting, we need to go work on that paper some more. I-"

"You need an A, yadda yadda yadda, I know," Roxas stood and offered him a hand. "C'mon."

The redhead grasped it and Roxas helped him up. As he walked past the blonde into the bathroom, he ruffled his hair and said, "You ain't half bad, kid."

Despite Axel's cheery reassurances that he was fine, Roxas could see the pain glazing his bright green eyes, hear the hollowness it left in his voice. They worked on their paper, an analysis of how Shakespeare portrayed love throughout different plays, for a couple of hours. Roxas, who was not great at writing, took over the finding of relevant quotes from several of the plays. Axel, who was very good at writing, began building sentences and paragraphs around those quotes.

Still, it was hard not to notice how fast Axel was spiraling out of control.

~::~

Friday night hit Roxas like a freight train. He was swamped with homework, sleep deprived, and ninety percent sure that if he drank any more grape soda to keep himself conscious, then he would turn purple, supplemented by the bruises earned from the three hours of restless sleep he had managed in the last two nights. _Damn slanted ceiling. It hates me_.

Axel was also furious at him because they only had half of their paper done. "If you go that party with Namine, I'll kill you," the redhead threatened. "Seriously. I know plenty of ways to make it look like a tragic accident."

Roxas laughed at this, a nervous little bark that fell flat like a ton of bricks. "Remind me to never eat anything you cook."

The smile that crept onto Axel's face sent shivers up Roxas's spine. "Oh, I wasn't talking about poison."

Shaking his head, Roxas went to get ready. _He's just trying to intimidate me. Axel would never actually try to kill me… would he?_

Axel stood in the doorway as Roxas made sure his hair was extra spiky for the party. "How the shit do you get it to defy gravity like that?"

"Magic," Roxas rolled his eyes at him. "Super strength hair spray, dumbass."

"Huh. I may have to try that myself."

"You have too much hair."

"Bigger spikes," Axel shrugged. "Besides, I like how it looks."

Roxas paused. "Was that a compliment?"

Axel smirked. "Merely an observation."

Once he was ready, Roxas spent the next half hour fidgeting on the couch in the living room. Axel seemed to know something he didn't about the party because he insisted that Roxas should wear his tightest pair of skinny jeans and a black v-neck t-shirt he didn't even know he owned. Used to baggy hoodies and not-so-tight jeans, Roxas felt practically naked.

Sitting there in the relative quiet of the living room, the blonde boy jumped several inches off the couch when the doorbell rang. Heart pounding, he walked to the front door.

"Don't do anything stupid, 'kay?"

Roxas turned to reply, but Axel had already disappeared. Taking a deep breath, the blonde boy opened the door. A slight blush crept across his cheeks, and he was glad that Axel's parents had gone out for the night. Namine was wearing the tightest black dress he had ever seen, with a neckline that wouldn't be allowed in any school Roxas knew of. She was also wearing twice as much make-up as usual, which was already a substantial amount. _Holy shit, man. She's fucking beautiful. Sexy. Whatever_._ Damn_.

Namine flashed him a dazzling smile. "Ready?"

"Y-yeah," Roxas managed to stutter. He felt dull and insignificant next to her blinding radiance.

"Well, come on, then. We don't wanna be late, do we?" She took his hand and led him down to her car, a sleek silver sports car that looked brand-new. Namine's touch left a strange feeling in the pit of Roxas's stomach that wasn't all that unpleasant. Roxas clambered into the passenger seat while Namine walked around to the driver's side and slid gracefully into her own seat.

"Relax, babe," Namine grinned at Roxas as she started the car. "This'll be one hell of a night!"

Seifer's house was not so much a house as it was a small mansion. Situated in the most expensive part of town, the elegant white building stood on a hill overlooking a lake. It would have been a picturesque view had the area not been crawling with cars and partygoers.

Roxas glanced out of the window of Namine's car. "How rich is this guy?"

"His dad's some big shot CEO and his mom is a personal trainer for celebrities. Read: filthy stinking rich," Namine checked her make-up in the rearview mirror and then opened her door. "Let's go."

Self-conscious and already struggling to breath in his tight clothes, Roxas followed her up the wide front steps of the mansion. Pounding music and light spilled out of the open double doors at the top of the stairs. When the blonde boy caught sight of the crowd inside, he hung back at the door.

Namine glanced at him over her shoulder. "What's wrong? It's just a party."

Roxas opened his mouth to argue, but closed it again as Riku and Sora ran up, the latter wearing a neon party hat.

"Hey, guys! We were wondering when you'd show up!" Sora gave Namine and Roxas jubilant hugs. Riku nodded in their direction, the very picture of a typical cool guy. Sora ran back inside a few steps and half-turned towards them. "Come on, we don't wanna miss the fun!"

Namine slipped her arm into the crook of Roxas's elbow and grinned. "You heard the boy. Fun is waiting to be had!" Before he could protest further, she pulled him through the doors.

The foyer of the mansion was packed with people. A few of them looked over at the four of them as they joined the back of the crowd. Roxas felt even more uneasy due to the fact that the look in their eyes was one of careful appraisal.

"Um, Namine…?" Roxas's plea fell upon deaf ears. The blonde girl was staring at the boy in a black beanie who had materialized at the top of the main staircase, flanked by a short, lithe girl and a muscular boy.

"Well, ladies and germs, as your host this fine evening, I would like to welcome you to this little shindig," Seifer strutted about like a rooster as he spoke. "I've got a couple of rules for you bunch of juvenile delinquents before the party gets into full swing. One, don't destroy anything that looks valuable, because it probably is. Two, if you _must_ christen the beds, please clean up after yourselves. Three, don't hurt your dumbass selves, okay? Oh. And the punch is not for the faint-hearted." He stopped in the center of the staircase and punched the air above his head. "Let the party begin!"

Cheers broke out from the crowd and masses of people scrambled out through two more sets of double doors on either side of the stairs. Sora pulled Roxas, Riku, and Namine along with the mass exodus of people. The doors opened out onto a wide patio with a pool on the far end. Half a dozen tables were set up around the perimeter, holding everything from cakes to pizzas to an enormous bowl of dark red punch. The center of the patio had been transformed into a dance floor complete with huge speakers and flashing strobe lights.

The music was so loud, Roxas had to shout to be heard as they passed. "Hey, Namine!"

"What?"

"Why is everybody-"

"Kairi, there you are! We've been looking everywhere for you!" Sora bounded forwards and gathered her into a rib-crushing hug.

"Sora! Hi! Choking!" The brunette released her and she took a few deep breaths. "Hey, guys."

Before anyone could reply, Sora ran behind them and herded the group over to the tables of food. The brunette boy was singing in a slightly off-key tenor as he cut a huge slice out of a chocolate cake and transferred it onto a plate. "There's no use crying over every mistake… You just keep trying till you run out of cake!"

Kairi glanced at Sora and then turned her gaze on Riku. "What did you give him?"

The silver-haired boy shrugged. "It was just one can of beer and a little pot. Nothing serious."

"Riku, he's high as a kite. Are you sure it was just a little?" Namine crossed her arms over her chest.

"Well, y'see, we were both a little… y'know…"

Roxas stopped listening, not all that interested in Riku's explanation of why he had given Sora contraband. He wandered down the line of tables, looking for something to eat. As he reached for a raspberry tart, a flash of crimson caught his eye. The blonde boy ignored it, thinking it was Kairi. He reached out once more, and he saw the bright red out of the corner of his eye again. _There_. He spun around to see Axel -_Axel?_- standing in front of a cooler labeled "Rum Raisin Ice Cream." Roxas opened his mouth to speak, blinked, and Axel was gone.

"Roxas! Why'd you run away?" Namine pushed her way through the crowd towards him, two Styrofoam cups in her hands.

"Did you… What… Food," he spluttered, too confused to string together a coherent sentence.

Namine handed him one of the cups. "Drink this. You look like you're choking."

Roxas took a huge gulp and instantly regretted it. It tasted like someone had poured a whole bag of sugar into a single bowl of Kool-Aid, but it also had a biting edge that burned his throat on the way down. It left him feeling light-headed.

He was about to ask Namine what the hell he was drinking when she grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the dance floor, throwing their drinks in a nearby trash can. "I love this song! Let's go dance!" _Shit. I can't dance_.

The two of them joined the throng of people inside the ring of speakers. The bass pounded through Roxas's body, matching the blood rushing in his ears.

"I don't know how to dance!" he shouted.

"Don't worry, babe, I know exactly what to do!"

Namine began swaying to the beat, and Roxas tried to copy her movements as best as he could. Roxas felt himself growing dizzy as the dance became more and more frenzied, swirling and mixing with the flashing lights and the smell of the thin layer of sweat coating their bodies. His breathing became ragged when Namine pressed her body against his, their hips grinding together. Roxas slid his arms around Namine's waist, and Namine slid hers around his neck. The music crescendoed. Their lips crashed together. The small part of Roxas's brain that was still coherent screamed at him to stop, but it was drowned out by the pounding music and what had most likely been alcohol in the punch. Roxas's tongue slid between Namine's lips, exploring new and unfamiliar territory. She tasted like wild cherries and vanilla, a delicate balance heated by passion. An eternity of nothing but lips locked together and bodies entwined passed. The song ended, and the connection shattered.

Gasping for breath, Roxas backed away from Namine, stunned by his actions. Through a gap in the dispersing crowd, he saw Axel staring at him, hands jammed in his pockets, shoulder blades jutting out behind him in his stance of righteous anger.

Roxas ran.

He ran and ran through the crowds on the patio, through the foyer of Seifer's mansion, and collapsed on the wide front steps, shaking uncontrollably. The blonde boy gulped fresh, cool night air like his life depended on it in a futile attempt to calm his racing heart.

Quiet footsteps approached. There was a flash of red, a whiff of mint leaves and cigarette smoke, the soft touch of a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't do anything stupid…"

"Roxas!" He turned to see Namine standing in the doorway behind him. "Are you okay? What the _hell_ was that about?"

"I…I'm fine. Thought I saw somebody," he gasped out, still breathless from running.

"Well, come back in here. Seifer's announcing the winners!" Roxas didn't bother to ask what she was talking about as he stumbled back inside.

"As I'm sure all of you know, I hold a little contest at every party to determine who are the best looking guy and gal. Everybody votes on a scale of one to ten what they thought of a particular person, and the results for tonight are in! Well, I'll stop rambling because I'm sure all of you crazy people are just dying to know who's been rated the hottest," The muscular guy on his right handed Seifer a folded piece of paper. He opened it and scanned the contents before looking at the crowd again. "Okay, who gave our winning guy an eleven billion? That's cheating!" A ripple of laughter passed through the crowd. "The winners are Roxas and Namine, each with a score of four hundred and eighty-one!"

Wild cheers erupted from the crowd and Seifer presented the two blonde teenagers with cash prizes of two hundred and fifty dollars apiece. After much high-fiving, back-slapping, and even some ass-grabbing, Roxas and Namine went and sat on the steps in front of the mansion.

Roxas sighed and stared up into the night sky. With all of the lights surrounding him, he couldn't see a single star anywhere.

"Namine?"

"Hmm?"

"I wanna go home."

~::~

Namine only agreed to take Roxas home if he promised to go to the next party that came up. He agreed, ready to go home, take something to ease his aching head, and sleep away all of Saturday.

The ride back to the von Fusen house was pervaded by an awkward silence born from Roxas's inability to form sentences that the average person would be able to understand. Before he got out of the car, Namine leaned over and kissed him, much more gently than the first time. "I'll see you later, okay?"

Roxas smiled and stumbled up the sidewalk to the house. Mrs. von Fusen opened the door, much to Roxas's surprise. "You're home early. Did something happen?"

"Nah. I just remembered that I have a ton of homework to do and I felt bad." The latter part of Roxas's statement was true, at least. He trudged up to his room and walked inside.

Axel looked up from his place on the bed. "You're early."

Dumbstruck, Roxas stood in the doorway and stared at the redhead. "You! But… how?"

"Did you drink something funky? Your cognition skills are fried," Axel tapped the side of his head. "I've been here the whole time."

"But I saw you! At the party!" Roxas blurted out. "You were there!"

"I've been here the whole time," the redhead repeated. "Oh, by the way, our paper's done."

"Done? But it was only half-finished when I left…"

Axe grinned. "I work fast. Now, I suggest you get some sleep. _Lots_ of sleep, preferably."

"Why?" Roxas walked over to the bunk beds.

"Your friends from home called while you were gone. Said something about you promising to visit them on the next long weekend that came up. We're off Monday," Axel scribbled a few words in his journal and then looked up at Roxas again. "You wouldn't want to break your promise, now would you?"

"I…" Roxas bit his lip. "No, I wouldn't." Reluctantly, he got ready for bed, taking a nice, long shower to try and wash away all of the thoughts racing unchecked through his head.

Axel too decided to turn in. Roxas, still in a daze, kept running into him and other objects and apologizing, not discriminating between animate and inanimate objects. When Sal bit him, however, he sobered up and managed to scale the ladder to his bed without falling off. The lights flicked off, and Roxas heard the rustle of the sheets on Axel's bed as he crawled under them below.

A few moments of silence passed. Then Roxas asked, "Axel, can I tell you something?"

"What?"

"I kissed Namine, for real, this time. Are you mad at me?"

Silence. Then, a heartbeat later, "No."

A ghosted sigh drifted through the darkness. Roxas wished Axel would tell him the truth.


	4. Chapter Four: Nostalgia

**Author's Note: **Finally, Chapter Four is done! I apologize for the shortness... Things didn't go as planned while writing this chapter. But, now that my exams are over and school is officially out, I'll have plenty of time to write. Good thing, too, because the next chapter's a gonna throw a curveball the size of Jupiter at poor Roxas...

~::~

Roxas didn't want to wake up at six o' clock on a Saturday morning. He didn't want to stuff the few belongings and changes of clothes he would need in a duffle bag. He didn't want to get dressed, didn't want to fix his hair, and certainly didn't want to eat the breakfast Axel made him. Roxas just didn't want to go home.

At 6:30 a.m. on the dot, they left. Mrs. von Fusen had given Axel the task of driving Roxas to the train station. Rather than feel obliged to talk to the redhead, Roxas stuffed his headphones in his ears and stared out the window the entire ride. The few times he did dare to glance at Axel, he had his eyes on the road, one hand on the steering wheel, the other tapping a steady rhythm on his leg.

Roxas must have closed eyes and dozed off at some point because the next thing he knew, Axel tapped him on the shoulder and took out one of his earbuds. "We're here."

The blonde boy yawned and clambered out of the car. He followed Axel up the stairs to the ticket booth, bought his ticket, and the two went to wait for the train to arrive.

"Hey, Roxas."

"What?" He was about to put his headphones back in, but stuffed his iPod in his bag instead.

"Well, first of all, I'm surprised you haven't asked why I'm the one here with you instead of my mom."

"Why are you here, then?"

Axel grinned, leaning against the back of the bench they were sitting on. "I didn't say I was gonna tell you. But I _will_ tell you that I'm supposed to give you a pep talk, or some shit like that," He paused to think. "So yeah. Smile more. Studies have shown that it's good for you."

Despite his best attempts to stop it, a tiny grin curled the corners of Roxas's lips.

"Aw, come on, that was weak. Smile!" Axel reached over and pulled the corners of Roxas's mouth up. "That's better."

Roxas swatted his hands away and laughed. He really did smile this time. "Okay, fine."

"Attaboy, Mr. Sunshine."

A loud whistle went off. The platform began to rumble as the train approached. The two boys stood and joined the small group of people congregating near the side of the tracks. The train rolled to a stop and people began climbing aboard.

Roxas shouldered his bag, intending to follow them, but Axel grabbed his arm and pulled him into a tight hug. Roxas gasped, and the sharp odor of fresh mint and cigarette smoke flooded his mouth and nose. Axel released him and pressed something into his hand. He stood there for a heartbeat, looking as if he were about to say something, and then turned and hurried out of the train station. Roxas was left staring at the blue gem and the handwritten note in his hand in stunned silence.

"_You left this on your bed. I thought you might want it. Stay safe._"

Roxas boarded the train last, dazed and confused. He chose a seat near the back, away from the majority of the other passengers. He let his crowded thoughts run rampant as he stared out the window at the passing scenery that flitted by faster and faster as the train picked up speed.

_Axel was mad at me, wasn't he? So why did he bother to give this to me?_ Roxas stared at the blue gem, still clutched in his hand where Axel had placed it. _Why was he so nice? I wouldn't have even wanted to look at me if I were him, let alone hug me._

Minutes slipped into hours. Roxas felt trapped, barreling towards a home he didn't want to return to. It had only been a month and a half since he left, two months since his parents died. A month and three weeks had passed since their funeral. It surprised Roxas how much it still hurt to think of his parents, his friends, his home.

Everything used to be perfect, all smiles and laughter and ice cream on the clock tower at sunset. He made good grades and plenty of people at school liked him enough to call him "friend." His family was well-off for its middle-class status.

A loud voice cut through his thoughts. It blared through the loud speaker overhead. "The train will be arriving at Eden View Station shortly."

Roxas sighed. The dread clutching his stomach tied it into complicated Celtic knots. The train slowed to a halt, and the blonde boy followed the other passengers out onto the platform. His friends were waiting.

Without a word, Roxas broke into a run and tackled Hayner, Pence, and Olette.

"Roxas!"

"Hey, man!"

"How've you been?"

The three teenagers bombarded him with questions as they disentangled their arms. Roxas tried his best to answer them all. "Yes… No… The house is nice… Of course not!"

Olette was the first to escape from the crush of bodies. She gazed at him with her dark eyes, no doubt appraising him. Roxas's suspicions were confirmed when she crossed her arms over her chest in a familiar stance and stated, "You look sad."

Hayner slung an arm around Roxas's shoulders and grinned. "Aw, come on, he probably had to get up at o' dark-thirty to get here on time. Anybody'd look sad if they lost that much sleep."

"See? He's got it all figured out," Pence tapped the side of his head. "Lighten up, Olette. Don't go all doom and gloom on us!" Roxas laughed along with the others when Olette pulled a face, but he thanked his lucky stars that the two boys had intervened before the smart brunette girl wormed the truth out of him.

"C'mon, my mom's waiting for us," Pence said after checking his cell phone. "I hope you're hungry, Roxas, because it sounds like she's prepared a real feast!" Pence's mother, a plump woman who loved cooking more than anything else, had readily agreed to let the four teens stay at her house when she was told Roxas would be visiting. The group piled into Pence's car and headed for his house. His mother was waiting for them, but not where they expected her to be. She was sitting on the wide front porch, a smile on her face and two huge baskets next to her chair.

Roxas scrambled out of the car as soon as it stopped and ran up the porch steps. "Auntie!" He bounced up and down like an excited child in front of her. "Are we going on a picnic?"

Pence's mother laughed and stood, sweeping him into a hug. "It feels like eons since I last heard your voice! We are indeed."

Roxas grinned. Memories started flooding back to him at an almost alarming speed. Summers tinted gold by swirling dust motes and fireflies flitted through his mind. One summer in particular stuck there, sweet and warm as honey. Pence's mother had discarded Mrs. Delaney to take on the name Auntie because she'd "rather be a dear old aunt than some stuffy old missus," or so she had said. Roxas was five years old that summer.

Hayner, Pence, and Olette joined them on the porch.

"Hi, Mom," Pence said. "I take it we're walking to the park?"

Auntie nodded and said, "Hayner, Roxas, go and get the cooler on the kitchen table, please." The two boys obliged, and they set off for the park.

Roxas's home town was very small, only about a thousand people. It was marked on the maps as Eden View, but the residents never called it that. To them it was Twilight Town, known for having the most beautiful sunsets anywhere. No one remembered when the town had obtained the endearing nickname but nobody cared. It was home.

As the five of them walked through the cobbled streets of the small downtown area, the people who owned the shops up and down its length waved and called greetings. In such a small town, pretty much everybody knew everybody else.

The familiar sight of the grassy expanse in the center of town made Roxas smile. Even from the edge of the park he could see the gigantic fountain in the middle that doubled as a pool in the summer and an ice skating rink in the winter. Roxas could remember past years when he partook of the entertainment the crystal-clear water provided.

The group chose a spot on the grass near the fountain, and the boys spread out a blanket to sit on while Olette and Auntie unpacked the food. Between bites of chicken salad sandwiches, fruit salad, and chocolate chip cookies still warm from the oven, Hayner, Pence, Olette, and Auntie questioned Roxas about his new home.

"So what's it like, living in a big city?" Hayner started the interrogation.

Roxas swallowed a morsel of cookie and replied, "Well, it's not exactly a big city. It's very different, though. The high school alone is three times bigger than the one here. And it's not… The people don't really know each other outside their little circle of friends."

Pence stared at him, incredulous. "Three times? That's like, ginormous!"

"No kidding. I got lost twice my first day, and I even had help."

Hayner spoke up again. "Is the whole place like that? Are the houses bigger, too?"

Roxas shrugged. "Not really. Some of the businesses are bigger, but only because they have more people to serve. The von Fusen's house is actually about the same size as the one I used to live in…" His voice trailed off as memories flooded his mind again.

Roxas was a little kid again, playing hide-and-seek with his parents in the house he had grown up in. Afternoon sunlight filtered through the blinds of the laundry room window. Roxas could catch glimpses of the swirling dust motes through the crack between the door and the side of the cupboard he was hiding in. it was his favorite hiding place. His parents always found him, but that was okay. When they did, they could sit together and talk and laugh, and maybe he would get ice cream before dinner.

"Yo! Earth to Roxas!" A hand waved in front of his face. "Did you hear a word I just said?"

Roxas stared at Hayner blankly as he took a bite of his sandwich.

"Man, you really need sleep," The dirty blonde boy shook his head. "As I was saying, what are the people like? You haven't really talked about anyone."

Roxas finished his sandwich and washed it down with a swig of ice-cold soda before he answered. "Well, they're not a whole lot different. I've made a few new friends, though."

Before he could elaborate, Auntie stood and dusted herself off. "I hate to leave so soon, but I've got some things to do back home. You kids just come on back when you're done." The four teens chorused a farewell, and she headed home.

"Tell us about your friends!" Pence demanded.

"Okay, okay! There's Demyx, who's crazy; Zexion, the resident genius; Kairi, who everyone says is too nice for her own good; Sora, who's crazier than Demyx; Riku, who thinks he's the sexiest man alive…" Roxas hesitated. A little warning bell sounded in the back of his mind. Something was telling him not to talk about Axel or Namine.

Of course, Olette, who had been quiet up until then, asked about them. "What about Namine? And Axel?"

Roxas sighed. _So much for keeping secrets_.

It took ten minutes for Roxas's friends to worm the information out of him. The blonde boy took a deep breath and focused on the rays of sun turning the water in the fountain into liquid diamonds, ignoring the uneasy feeling in his gut.

"Well, Namine… She's…. amazing. She's cute and funny and smart and… Shit. I'm babbling. Please shut me up."

Hayner looked mortified while Pence tried not to laugh.

"You got bitten really bad by that stupid lovebug," Hayner shook a clenched fist in the direction of Roxas's head. "Why can't the damn thing leave us alone?"

Pence giggled like a school girl. "Roxas is in _looove_."

"I am not!"

Olette shook her head as the three boys fought. "Boys are so stupid."

Hayner turned to look at her, eyes narrowed. "Well, if you're so smart, why don't you tutor our little Roxas in the art of love?"

He flinched when Olette turned her stern gaze on him. "Oh, hush," she then spoke to Roxas in an equally harsh tone. "I have only three words to say on the matter: Don't screw up."

"Gee, thanks. Such an insightful piece of knowledge has changed my life," Roxas rolled his eyes. He hoped the blush on his cheeks wasn't too obvious.

"How about Axel? You've said maybe three words about him," Hayner said.

"Yeah," Pence added. "He's a redhead."

Roxas stayed silent until Hayner poked him in the ribs. "C'mon, tell us about him!"

"Um… Well…" Roxas didn't know where to start. The realization that he knew very little about his roommate struck him as odd. He'd been living with the von Fusens for over a month and he still didn't know basic information about Axel.

"He likes pickles," the blonde boy blurted out. His three friends stared at him in confusion. Roxas held his hands up in defense. "What? He does. And… he's really tall, even by my short standards. He's got these weird little teardrop tattoos on his cheeks. We share a room. And before you ask, we do _not_ share a bed. Oh. He also smokes, and he seems to really like animals. There's not a whole lot else to say…"

"If you know that little, he must be pretty reserved," Olette mused.

Roxas shrugged. "He can be, yeah. It depends on who he's with."

"Hmph. Well, I'm ready to go back," Hayner stood and stretched. "If we take this stuff back to Auntie, maybe we can run around town for a few hours before dinner."

"Sounds like a plan," Pence agreed. The four teens packed up the remainder of the picnic and left the park, heading for Auntie's house.

After they returned the baskets and blanket to Auntie and dropped Roxas's bag off in the large basement room the four of them would be sharing, the group stole a few more cookies and ran out of the house giggling like little girls.

"Let's go to Sunset Hill and stake out a spot early," Hayner led them down the sidewalk. "And we have to get ice cream."

Roxas's mouth watered at the thought of his favorite dessert. After eating it every afternoon for almost thirteen years of his life, a month and a half without it was torture.

"I thought we were gonna go to the clock tower," Olette replied. "Don't go changing our plans every five minutes."

"I'm not!" Hayner protested. "We can go after. I just thought Roxas would like to get reacquainted with all of our favorite spots."

"The usual spot tomorrow, then?" Pence asked. "I have some unfinished business with Roxas concerning a game of darts."

Roxas chuckled, remembering the incident. "More like a few. How many games did we tie? Three? Four?"

"A ridiculous amount, considering how bad at darts the two of you are," Olette interjected. "We're here, by the way."

Sunset Hill was a favorite hang out spot for the teens of Twilight Town. From atop it, one could see almost the entire town spread out before them. The only place that could boast better views, especially of the sunsets, was the balcony at the top of the train station clock tower. Roxas often wondered if the builders of the magnificent structure made it face west on purpose, just so anyone that happened to be up there when the sun set would receive a special reward for their troubles.

The huge bells hanging from the clock tower's peak rang twice, signaling the hour. "There's still a lot of time left before sunset," Olette stated, glancing at the tower in the distance. "What are we gonna do until then?"

"Catch up with each other, I guess," Roxas shrugged. "Not a whole lot else to do."

"Sure there is! We could go skateboarding, or shopping, or raid my mom's kitchen again!" Pence spread his arms wide, earning a loud, indignant cry from Hayner when he almost smacked him in the face. "You just have to use your imagination!"

The other three teens were decidedly short on imagination and enthusiasm. For lack of a better idea, the group sat and talked about whatever they could think of for a couple hours.

Finally Roxas said, "Hey, guys… Do you think we could go to my old house?"

Olette looked worried. "Are you sure that's a good idea? I mean, it's only been a couple months…" She sighed when she recognized the determined look in Roxas's blue eyes. "Fine. Let's go."

Roxas was thankful that his old house was on the way to the sweet shop and Station Heights. If it wasn't, his three friends would have never agreed to go. The Sinclair's house had been in the family for three generations before Roxas was born. It was a square, white-washed farm house with a wraparound porch and a sprawling back yard.

Hayner, Pence, and Olette hung back while Roxas walked up the sidewalk to the front door. The spot where the welcome mat once lay was pale compared to the dark wood around it. Roxas stared down at it while he fished his house key out of his pocket. He unlocked the front door with shaking hands and stepped into the long front hallway. Through a door to his right was the kitchen. A laughing blonde toddler ran across the tiled floor, chased by a woman with light brown hair. A man with warm green eyes and the same blonde hair as the boy sat at the kitchen table, chuckling into a mug of steaming coffee.

Roxas blinked and shook his head. He continued on down the hall. In the living room, the blonde boy, now older, sat with his parents on the couch, enraptured by a movie on the television screen. The playroom was transformed into a party room for the boy, now almost a man at sixteen years of age.

Roxas couldn't even go into the bedroom that once belonged to him. The memories there would be too much for him, too sad. Instead, he turned and all but ran back down the hall way, back to his friends and reality.

~::~

The rest of the day passed in a blur. The visit to his old house left Roxas disjointed from the events taking place around him. On several occasions, one of his friends was forced to ask him a question multiple times before the blonde boy realized someone was talking to him. Olette asked him if he was all right, and Roxas lied through his teeth that "yes, he was fine, just tired."

The four friends set up a communal bed in Pence's basement and watched movies, talked, and snacked until they fell asleep.

Roxas, however, was unable to drift off. The thoughts swirling in his mind combined to form a single memory. He was twelve again, sitting amongst a pile of birthday presents wrapped in colorful paper and bows. Half a dozen of his closest friends sat nearby, arguing over whose present should be opened first. The group quieted when Roxas picked one at random and tore off the paper.

Ten presents later, Roxas had received almost two hundred dollars worth of toys, books, and numerous other smaller gifts. Despite all that, Roxas frowned. His parents promised him a bigger present, one he'd been waiting for all year. Just then, said adults walked into the room, carrying a box between them. Roxas's frown curled upwards into a smile as he realized what it was.

He leapt up and ran over to where his mother and father set the present down on the coffee table in the middle of the living room. Without having to be told, he began tearing paper off the box. To his surprise, there was another layer under the first one. He kept tearing his way through half a dozen more layers, almost giving up at one point, until he reached his prize: the best skateboard money could buy. Friends from school had taught him how to ride one, but he was forced to borrow someone else's when he wanted to ride around town. Not anymore.

He looked at his parents, smiling wider than he ever remembered smiling. They smiled back, their eyes saying it all. _You deserve it. You're our only son, our pride and joy. We love you, Roxas. We love you…_

A tear escaped from the corner of Roxas's eye, jolting him back to the present. Another one followed it, and soon, it became a flood of stinging droplets fighting to escape his burning eyes. He rolled over and shoved his face into his pillow, muffling the sob that burst from his lungs. He choked for air, unable to stop himself from crying. _It's not fair! I want them back. I want everything to go back to the way it was! I don't care how fucking selfish it sounds, I don't get why it was my parents that died instead of someone else's. I would never have been forced to live with the von Fusens. I could still be here, with my friends. I wouldn't have to put up with Axel… _Roxas turned on his side and sniffed. _Axel. I wish he were here right now. I bet he could help me…_ Roxas shook his head. Who was he kidding? Axel had enough to worry about already. He didn't need the blonde boy taking up his precious time.

Sleep didn't come easily to Roxas that night. He lay awake for hours, trying to cope with the grief that his memory resurrected, manifesting itself as a dull ache in his chest that made him feel hollow.

Sunday was nothing but a cycle of eating, talking, walking somewhere, faking a smile and a laugh, talking some more, wash, rinse, and repeat. Roxas felt himself slipping away from his three best friends. Hayner, Pence, and Olette noticed the growing distance as well, but did their best not to comment.

That afternoon, the four teenagers decided to return to the clock tower, their favorite ice cream in hand. Roxas followed the others up the spiral staircase that led to the top, oblivious to the conversation they were holding that concerned his odd behavior that day.

Once outside on the balcony, Roxas felt tears well up in his eyes. The sunset that day was by far the best he ever witnessed, and that saying something considering he'd seen quite a few.

"Here," Olette said, handing him one of the sea-salt ice cream popsicles as they sat down. Roxas thanked her, and she nodded.

"It's weird to think we may not get to do this again for a long time," Pence sighed, taking a bite out of his ice cream. "I mean, we said we'd be best friends forever, but it's so hard to keep that promise now that you're not here anymore, Roxas."

The blonde boy hesitated to reply, Pence's words sending a shiver down his spine due to realization that they sounded eerily like something Axel had once said to him. "We're still best friends, right?"

Hayner stared out at the sun, just barely dipping below the horizon now. "Yeah. It doesn't matter whether or not you're here, Roxas. As long as we think about each other, we'll still be friends. Right?"

Roxas opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it and just nodded. He took a couple bites of ice cream so he wouldn't have to say anything. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk; he just couldn't come up with the right words.

A few minutes of silence passed. The four of them sat watching the sun sink lower and lower in the sky, the horizon swallowing it up like a famished child eating a much-needed meal.

Olette pulled something out of her pocket and held it up in front of the sun. The yellow orb in her hand glinted in the rays of light. Hayner and Pence followed suit, taking an orange and green orb, respectively, out of their pockets. Roxas realized what they were doing. The gems were a gift from him from two years back when he won the local Struggle tournament, a game that the children of the town invented many years ago. The trophy they were from still sat in his old room, a reminder that when he came of age, he would inherit the house from his parents.

Roxas retrieved the blue gem from his own pocket, making a mental note to thank Axel when he got back. He held the gem up like his friends, and the last rays of the setting sun burned the glittering blue fire within it into his memory forever.

The sun vanished beneath the horizon. Darkness began to creep over the edges of the landscape. Roxas burst out crying all of a sudden and ran back down the stairs and out of the station with his friends calling after him to stop.

~::~

Monday brought with it black storm clouds heavy with rain. Forced to stay indoors until Roxas left, the group of teens did little to ease the awkward silence between them. The blonde boy could not bring himself to explain his strange actions the night before, and Hayner, Pence, and Olette knew better than to press him for details.

Roxas boarded the train back to his new home at seven o' clock after tearful goodbyes reminiscent of the ones just a few weeks before. Somehow, he felt even worse going back to the von Fusens than he had returning to his hometown and his friends. _Is it guilt, maybe? Or am I just sad to say goodbye, maybe for real this time? I want to stay with them, I do, but… things will never be the same._

The train ride took what seemed like an eternity. Roxas was no longer interested in the scenery outside the window or anything in his bag. With a jolt, he realized that his phone had been off the entire weekend and he never bothered to check it. To his surprise, he had two missed calls and a text from Namine, and a total of five missed calls and three texts from Axel. Roxas wasn't sure which stunned him more, the fact that Namine was practically ignoring him or the fact that Axel was trying to get in touch with him more than Namine.

Axel was waiting for him when the train arrived in the station. Roxas walked up to him and managed a small, weary, "Hello."

Axel looked down at him, hands in his pockets. "Hey. You okay? You never picked up when I tried to get in touch with you."

Roxas stared at his feet. "M'sorry. My phone was off all weekend. I was spending time with my friends."

"I understand. Come on," Axel led the blonde boy back to the car waiting in the parking lot. Roxas slid into the passenger's seat while Axel climbed in on the other side.

"Sal's apparently got really bad separation anxiety," Axel informed Roxas as they pulled out of the parking lot. "The poor thing wouldn't stop looking for you all over the house and meowing his little heart out."

Roxas glanced at the redhead. "Really? I thought he liked you more than me."

"He's warmed up to you," Axel replied, keeping his eyes on the road. "Hell, if you fed _me_ treats every five minutes, I'd like you a lot more too."

Roxas couldn't help but laugh at the thought. "Good luck with that. I doubt you want to eat fish- flavored cat treats."

Axel wrinkled his nose in disgust. "You're right. You could always give me pickles, though. I would be happy to accept that."

"Again, good luck with that," Roxas stared out the window. He remembered the mental note he had made and turned back to Axel. "Hey, thank you for giving me that gem back. It… means a lot to me."

For the first time in almost two months, Axel was left without any kind of response. For all his mastery of words, one simple sentence made his mind go blank. Roxas stared at him in shock, wondering if he'd said something wrong.

After several quiet seconds, Axel managed to say "You're welcome, kid" before lapsing back into an awkward silence.

Roxas would have given his right arm to know what the redhead was thinking then, but he kept his wishes to himself. Better to let Axel tell him in his own sweet time, if he ever wanted to. It didn't pay to rush such a delicate operation.


	5. Chapter Five: Puzzles

**Author's Note:** Good grief, I finished this fast. I'm warning you now, this chapter is quite a bit more mature than the last few. Also, I am not to be held responsible for any dying of laughter that may occur on Axel's behalf. I'm innocent, I swear!

~::~

The first mysterious note appeared on Tuesday. Roxas was going about his school day as normal, not expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen, until he opened his locker before lunch and a small piece of paper fluttered to the floor. He picked it up, curious, and turned it over to see that there were words on the back.

"_Your black-and-white checkered backpack screams indecision from its place on the floor._"

"What's with the face?" Axel materialized next to him and peered over his shoulder at the heart-shaped piece of pink construction paper. "What's that?"

Roxas was sure his face was the picture of utter bewilderment. "I have no idea. It was in my locker, but it's not mine."

Axel's eyebrows went up. "Looks like you've got yourself an admirer. Is there a name on it?"

Roxas shook his head. "No. But it's got some letters at the bottom… 'IPTALY,' whatever that means."

The redhead shrugged. "Hell if I know. Come on, let's go to lunch. Mom sent me pickles today!"

Roxas rolled his eyes and followed him to the cafeteria.

Their usual group was waiting for them. Demyx and Zexion seemed to be deep in an argument about the probability of mythical creatures being real, something Axel and Roxas wished to avoid getting caught up in at all costs. The thing that surprised them was that Larxene was sitting there listening with rapt attention.

Axel stopped in his tracks, causing Roxas to collide with him. "Larxene, what are you doing over here?"

She looked up at him and waved her hand in dismissal. "I wanted a change of scenery, that's all."

Axel sat down across from her, still stunned, and Roxas went to get his lunch, making sure the paper heart in his pocket didn't get damaged. Larxene had switched sides to sit next to Axel by the time the blonde boy returned, tray of food in hand. They seemed to be in their own heated discussion, and Roxas hoped they didn't start a shouting match in the middle of the lunchroom.

As he sat, Roxas pulled the note in his pocket out and read it again, wondering what it meant.

"Hey, what's that?" Demyx leaned over the table and snatched it out of his hand. "Ooh, does Roxas have a secret admirer?"

Larxene and Axel looked up at his loud exclamation.

The blonde boy blushed. "Shut up. I don't know."

"Considering the fact that this paper is not only heart-shaped but also pink, I would say there's a good chance it's a girl," Zexion inspected the note. "I can't say that I know what the words on it means, but I _can_ tell you that it smells like vanilla."

"Namine?" Roxas blurted out before he could stop himself.

"It would seem so," Zexion's mouth formed a thin, discontented line.

Larxene, who stayed quiet throughout this whole exchange, spoke up. "Take a woman's advice, Roxas: Just wait and see if any more show up. Maybe once whoever it is has gotten the courage to leave a few, they'll tell you their name."

"I second that," Axel agreed.

Roxas nodded and tucked the piece of paper into a pocket in one of his binders, taking great pains to make sure it didn't get bent or torn. Somehow, he succeeded in keeping the note in pristine condition the rest of the school day. Once he arrived home that afternoon, he took it out of its pocket and put it in an old shoebox, which he hid in the corner of the closet.

Axel watched him do this from his spot on his bed with mild fascination. "You sure are making a big fuss over one tiny piece of paper. You don't even know who it's from."

Roxas shrugged and went to stand by the windows. "Doesn't matter who it's from. Somebody cared enough to leave it for me, so it must be important."

"I see your point," the redhead replied as he scribbled something in his journal.

Roxas glanced over his shoulder. "What are you writing in there, a novel? I don't think I've ever seen you without it."

Axel paused and looked up at him. "Not a novel. Just… stuff."

The blonde boy walked over and sat down beside him. Axel hastily closed the journal and sat on it. "Just stuff, huh? Then why are you so protective of it? You act like it's your kid or something."

"It is. My brainchild," This earned a laugh from Roxas. "No, really, it's just whatever happens to pop up in my head that I think is interesting or I should remember, so I write it down. No harm in that, right?"

"No. But you're awfully secretive," Axel smirked. Roxas scowled at him. "What's so funny?"

"I find it entertaining that you always want to be told everything. You never _think_, man."

"Thinking is overrated."

The two boys lapsed into silence. Roxas walked over to where Sal was curled up in his bed in the corner of the room, watching them with intelligent yellow eyes. The black cat stretched out a paw to bat at one of the pulls on Roxas's hoodie as the blonde boy sat down on the floor beside him. Roxas scratched behind the cat's ears and smiled as he felt Sal purr beneath his hand.

"I told you he likes you," Axel abandoned whatever he was writing to go sit next to Roxas. Sal stood and stretched, weaving circles between Axel's legs until the redhead sat down. "He just told me so."

"So you can talk to animals now?" Roxas glanced at Axel. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you." Both of the boys laughed at this. Sal cocked his head to the side, looking as if he didn't get what was so funny. The black cat meowed as they continued to laugh and then jumped onto Axel's chest, knocking him backwards. When Roxas laughed harder, Sal jumped at him as well. To avoid being knocked over, the blonde boy dived underneath the leaping cat and, unfortunately, landed on Axel. Roxas lay stunned, staring down into Axel's just as surprised green eyes. _He's got pretty eyes. I never noticed._ "Hi," the older boy said, trying not to smirk. "Just couldn't keep yourself away, could you?"

Roxas choked on the indignant cry that bubbled up out of his lungs and rolled off of him, coughing.

Axel sat up and looked down at him with a worried gaze. "Are you okay?"

Roxas nodded and took several deep breaths. "I'm okay." _What the hell was that? I… what did I just think that for? Pretty eyes?_

"You sure you're okay? You look a little… I dunno, _mortified_ or something."

Roxas, not trusting his legs to hold him up if he tried to stand, also sat up and fixed his tousled hair. "Nah, I'm fine, I swear. Sal's fur probably got in my mouth or nose. Sorry I landed on you."

"S'okay. You're not as heavy as you look. You weigh about as much as a little girl," Axel rolled out of the way when Roxas tried to punch him. "Aw, come on, I was kidding. You're just short, that's all!" Axel was forced to make a run for the balcony when Roxas leapt up and tried to sit on him. Laughing again, the two of them sat down on the wooden floor of the balcony. Their laughter faded into silence as they stared out at the expanse of rolling hills behind the house.

"Hey, about this weekend… Did something happen while you were at your old home? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but you can always talk about it if you need to vent."

Roxas glanced at Axel and then looked down at his hands, folded in his lap. "Well, I…" He bit his lip. "I just realized things will never be the same again. I'm just… sad."

"I know how you feel, I think. Or something like it," Axel sighed and leaned back against the wall of the house. "I think everybody goes through something like that."

"Do you? Well, I wouldn't know. You never tell _me_ anything," Roxas didn't mean for it to sound as bitter as it did. He regretted his words when Axel looked over at him, eyebrows raised.

"I'm sorry. I didn't think you cared."

"W-well, I do," Roxas spluttered. _Pretty eyes. And his face is nice_… _What the fuck am I thinking?_ "I'm your roommate. I think I deserve to know. You questioned my ass off the first day we met. It's been a month and a half since then."

Axel sighed and pulled his ever-present pack of cigarettes and lighter out of his pocket. "Ask away, Mr. Sunshine."

"If that's my new nickname, I'm gonna kill you."

"It's that, or Mr. Vertically Challenged," Roxas coughed as Axel exhaled a cloud of smoke in his face.

"Fine. Um… Let's see… Questions…"

"We don't have all day. Mom's gonna call us for dinner soon, I bet."

Roxas glared at the redhead. "Shut up, I'm thinking."

"Don't hurt yourself."

Roxas rolled his eyes and proceeded to ask the only question he had the brain capacity to come up with. "What's your favorite color?"

Axel looked like he was about to laugh in the blonde's face, but he answered nonetheless, wisps of smoke curling out from between his lips. "Green. Really dark green, like… pine trees."

"What about… your favorite band?" Roxas's eyebrows went up when Axel looked away sheepishly. "What?"

"You'll think I'm crazy," He sighed when Roxas began drumming his fingers on his leg. "Okay, fine… It's Evanescence."

Roxas stared at him in confusion. "Who?"

Axel's mouth dropped open and he barely managed to catch his cigarette before it hit the balcony floor. "You mean you have no knowledge of the awesomeness that is Evanescence? Hold on a second, I've gotta get my iPod," The redhead ran into their room to retrieve it. When he returned, he gave Roxas one of the headphones and started scrolling through songs. "Here we go. Tell me if it's too loud."

Roxas caught a glimpse of the screen of Axel's iPod before it went dark. The song was called "Bring Me to Life." Axel began singing along under his breath, an octave below the woman's voice in the song. The heavy guitar was something Roxas wasn't used to, and despite how much he liked the lead singer's voice, he gave the headphone back to Axel.

"So what do you think?" The redhead asked, looking hopeful.

"I like her voice. The guitar is a bit much, but… it's good."

Axel grinned. "Good. Anymore questions?"

Roxas thought for a moment. "Well… I've been wondering about those tattoos you have… Do they mean anything?"

Axel opened his mouth to respond and seemed to think better of whatever he was going to say. A few moments of silence elapsed before he replied. "Reminders. Memories. Whatever you want to call it. My family's only lived here for a couple of years. The last place we lived, I had a best friend who… He meant a lot to me. About a month after I turned fifteen, we got into a really bad fight, and a couple days later he disappeared. They found his body a week later with a bullet hole in his skull," Roxas stared at him in horror, unable to come up with any kind of response. Axel continued speaking. "These are for him. I don't want to forget him, even if it hurts, but these are proof that promises don't mean anything. We promised we'd be best friends forever, and look how that worked out."

Roxas plucked up the courage to meet Axel's sorrowful green gaze. Still unable to speak, all he could do was give the redhead a sad smile.

Axel took one final drag on his cigarette and then crumbled the stub in his hand, much to Roxas's surprise. He blew out the smoke with a sigh. "I'm stupid for keeping the past alive like this, aren't I? I don't even know why I did it. Just showed up at the tattoo parlor one day and got it done. Mom just about killed me when I came home after."

"I don't think you're stupid… but you do hang on to the past a little too much for it to be healthy. I mean, if you're always worrying about stuff that happened before, then you'll miss everything else that's going on."

"I never thought about that…" Axel's head jerked up. "Hey, I hear Mom calling us. Come on."

"How did you _hear_ that?" Roxas asked as he followed Axel through their room and downstairs.

"Magic," he answered with a grin.

~::~

The next couple of days passed without any major incidents aside from Axel and Roxas barely getting their English paper in on time and two more of the mysterious notes appearing. Friday night, Namine invited Roxas to see a movie with her. He accepted readily, happy to get a chance to see her outside of school and away from the watchful eye of Axel. Thankfully his parents were on a weekend-long trip to see friends out of town.

The two blonde teenagers didn't pay much attention to the romantic comedy on the screen. They mostly conversed in quiet whispers, talking about whatever came up in conversation. Afterwards, they walked out of the theater into the gathering dusk. Namine led Roxas over to her silver sports car, but opened the back door instead. She motioned for him to get in, and she followed, closing the door behind her.

When Roxas turned to ask Namine what was going on, she pulled him into a kiss that left him breathless. Sitting in the back seat of Namine's car in the dark emboldened the blonde boy, and he returned the kiss, sliding his tongue between her lips. The familiar taste of wild cherries and vanilla flooded his mouth as their tongues battled. Namine swung herself over the armrest of the chair, breaking the kiss for an instant, before settling herself in Roxas's lap, facing him. They resumed their kiss, but this time, Roxas felt a strange feeling in his gut, one he'd only experienced a few times before.

Panicked, he whispered against Namine's lips, "I-I don't t-think this is such a good…"

His words trailed off into a moan muffled by Namine's mouth as she slid a hand across the lump in the front of Roxas's jeans. "This is new for you isn't it, babe?" she murmured against his lips, gently stroking the front of his pants. "Tell me if you want me to stop." She unzipped the fly of his jeans and ran a finger down his burgeoning erection. She tugged his pants down around his knees and then continued stroking him.

Roxas was incapable of speech at this point, trying not to bite his own tongue off as he contained his moans. The feeling in his gut was escalating, molten desire pulsing through his veins.

"Don't worry, no one will hear you," Namine turned her head to kiss his neck, biting it softly. Her hand pulled the waistband of Roxas's boxers down inch by inch. Before he knew it, they had joined his jeans around his knees.

Roxas hissed through his teeth as Namine's hand wrapped around the base of his dick and slid up and down in a rhythmic motion. Namine kissed him again, this time the one in control, Roxas rendered helpless beneath her hands. She pulled his shirt up and trailed kisses down his stomach, ending just above where her hand met his body when she slid it down his dick.

"Last chance," she crooned. "Tell me to stop if you want me to."

Roxas could have said no, could have stopped her, but the only motion he was able to make was a small shake of his head sideways. Namine's mouth replaced her hand, and she licked the head of his cock once, making the blonde boy moan. She ran her tongue from the base all the way up to the lip, trailing her fingers after it. Then, she slid the twitching erection into her mouth and began sucking lightly while she began moving her head up and down.

"Namine…" Roxas moaned, his hands fisting in her hair. He tried to move her head faster, but she resisted, teasing, taunting him. Only after he stopped trying to control her did she increase her pace, Roxas's hips twitching upwards to meet her. Soon, Namine began deep-throating him, and he moaned and hissed in pleasure as her hands reached what her mouth could not. Her pace increased to a fervor, and Roxas could barely hold back the fire in his gut.

"I'm gonna… I can't…" The blonde boy gasped for air as Namine sucked harder. The heat in his gut became unbearable, and with a cry of pleasure Roxas came in Namine's mouth, leaving him limp as a wet paper towel and gasping for air, covered in sweat.

Namine swallowed and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Congratulations, Roxas, you've officially achieved manhood."

Roxas's hands shook as he pulled his boxers back up, followed by his jeans. He still tried to catch his breath as he replied, "_Holy_ _shit_."

Namine leaned forwards and kissed him on the lips. Roxas could taste his own cum on her mouth, mingling with cherry and vanilla. He gagged and nearly threw up, but managed to keep his dinner down.

The two of them climbed into the front seats after they were presentable and Namine set off for the von Fusen's house. Throughout the ride, one thought kept repeating itself in Roxas's mind: _Axel's gonna hate me. He'll kill me for sure._

Before he left, Namine kissed Roxas again and said, "Tonight was fun. Maybe we'll do it again sometime."

Roxas stumbled out of the car and up the sidewalk to the front door, dreading Axel's questions when he came in looking like he did now. However, when the blonde boy unlocked the door and stepped inside, the house was dark and silent as the grave.

"Hello?" he called as he ascended the stairs to his room. No answer came. Roxas walked through the dark bedroom, not having the strength to turn on the lights. He went to the closet and groped around for his pajamas. He had just located them when footsteps sounded on the stairs. Fear surged through him. There were not one but _two_ sets of footsteps outside. He pulled the closet door as close to closed as he could while still being able to see through the crack just as two figures emerged from the gloom, stepping into the rays of moonlight filtering through the blinds on the windows.

"Okay, okay," The shorter one giggled, sounding tipsy. "Oops, sorry. That was your foot." Roxas hand to bite his finger to stop himself from gasping out loud when he recognized the voice. _What the hell is Larxene doing here while Axel's parents are gone?_

The other figure, which Roxas decided had to be Axel, hushed her. The whisper of fabric against skin was the only sound for several moments before Axel said, "You sure about this, Larx?"

Larxene giggled. "Of course I am! Come on!"

Bedsprings creaked. The two were no longer in Roxas's line of vision, and his stomach lurched when he realized what was going on. _Axel and Larxene aren't actually gonna… do anything, are they? Oh, God, I know I'm not the most religious person in the world, but please, please let me keep my sanity…_

Soon Axel's quiet voice and Larxene's giggles turned into moans and sighs as more and more clothes were thrown on the floor in Roxas's line of vision. When a red thong landed near the closet door, Roxas pressed himself up against the back wall of the closet and curled into a ball, trying to ignore the sounds the two teenagers were making. His dick was beginning to get hard for the second time that night just thinking about what was going on in the bedroom. The pace in the other room escalated, causing the sounds to come louder and faster, names and curses screamed to no one in particular. Roxas jerked his pants down and slid his hands into his boxers, unable to stop himself. He jacked off to the sounds of intense pleasure, not sure what else to do to ease the fire. The two in the other room let out one last, resonating cry of delight as Roxas sent himself over the edge, and then all was quiet.

Roxas wiped his hand on the carpet, horrified at his behavior. Sure, he'd jacked off once or twice before, but never to someone else, especially not Axel and his ex-girlfriend. _Shit. If he finds me here, I'm so dead it's not even funny._

Unable to leave until Axel and Larxene vacated the premises, Roxas curled up in the corner of the closet and waited for morning.

~::~

Axel took Larxene home that morning, apparently oblivious to the fact that Roxas never came home. After he heard the car they had arrived in drive off, he stripped off his clothes and changed into clean ones. When he emerged from the closet, Sal was sitting there, tail twitching back and forth.

"You want food, don't you," Roxas sighed, exhausted from the previous night's ordeals. He must have fallen asleep at some point because he didn't remember the sun rising. He followed Sal down the stairs to his food bowl in the kitchen and poured the black cat's breakfast into it. Roxas grabbed a package out of a box of Pop-Tarts on the counter and nibbled at one half-heartedly as he walked into the living room and sat down on the couch, trying to make it look like he had slept downstairs.

Axel came back within ten minutes. He stopped in his tracks when he walked past the door to the living room and saw Roxas lying on the couch, blueberry Pop-tart crumbs littering the front of his shirt.

"When the fuck did you get here?"

Roxas looked up at him, trying to look surprised. "I've been here all night. I was so tired, I just fell asleep on the couch instead of going up stairs."

Axel continued to stare at him for a moment before he shook his head and headed up to their room, muttering under his breath. Roxas breathed a sigh of relief and dusted himself off as he stood and returned to the kitchen to throw away the now-empty Pop-Tart package in his hand. He followed Axel upstairs after a couple of minutes to find the redhead wadding up his black sheets.

"Whatcha doing?" Roxas asked, walking over to him.

Axel whipped around. "Nothing. I just need clean sheets. These have been on here forever." He answered much quicker than he would have normally.

"Okay," Roxas tried to act innocent.

Axel disappeared downstairs and Roxas climbed the ladder to his bed. He flung himself on it face-first, sighing into the pillow. _What am I gonna do now? I can't ask him about it. And I can't tell him what happened last night with me and Namine, either…_

He sighed again and groped around the edge of the wooden rim of his bed for the small set of fabric pockets Mrs. von Fusen had given him so he could store things nearby instead of having to climb up and down the ladder all the time. He pulled out a small folder from one of the pockets and carefully extracted the three pink construction paper hearts inside of it. He laid them out in the order he received them on his bed and read the two new ones out loud. "Straps torn, seams ripped, it is the picture of time-worn care (or is it dejection?)... and it weighs your spirit down like so many tons of stone." They both also had the letters "IPTAHY" written at the bottom.

The blonde boy sighed. These strange messages made no sense to him, and no one else was able to explain them to him either. Axel had been right when he said Roxas never thought for himself. He always waited for someone else to come along and hand him the answers to his problems.

"Shit!" Roxas peered over the edge of his bed to see Axel fall flat on his face near the doorway. The redhead sat up nursing his chin and muttering curses under his breath.

"What happened?"

Axel looked up, startled, and Roxas could have sworn he was blushing. "I… tripped over my own foot."

Roxas waved a hand in dismissal. "Don't sound so embarrassed. I do that all the time, in case you forgot."

"True. You're a klutz," Axel smirked at he stood and walked over to the bunk beds.

"Yeah, well," From where Roxas was sitting, he could see dark circles under Axel's eyes. "You look tired."

Axel sighed. "I didn't get any sleep last night. Larxene… She got into a bad fight with Marluxia and they broke up. I… talked to her all night."

_Yeah. You 'talked' to her all night. Of course that's all you were doing. You certainly weren't fucking her into your mattress, were you?_ "Is she okay?" Roxas acted as innocent as he could.

"I dunno. She's still pretty torn up."

"I hope she feels better. It must suck to break up," Roxas returned the folder and the paper hearts to their pocket and then descended the ladder halfway so he was on eye level with Axel. "So what are we gonna do now that your parents are gone?"

Axel laughed. "That sounded dirty."

Roxas tried to punch him. "Pervert!"

"Only on days that end in a Y," The two boys laughed. Axel then continued. "I dunno. If there's anything you wanna do, let me know. I don't have any plans."

Roxas shrugged. "I'll think about it."

"Don't hurt your self."

"Shut up!"

Axel's phone began ringing at that moment. Roxas nearly died laughing when he realized the ring tone was "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga. Only a week before their lunch table had gotten into an argument over whether or not people who listened to said musician were mentally retarded.

"Hello?" Axel said into his cell phone. "Demyx, hi. What's up?" Roxas could faintly hear the voice on the other end. "You want us to what? Are you sure that's a good idea…? Oh, hi, Zexion. This was _your_ idea? I think the world's gonna end."

"What do they want us to do?" Roxas poked Axel's arm.

Axel covered the phone with his hand. "Demyx and Zexion want us to go to an amusement park with them. You game?"

"Of course!" Roxas grinned.

"It sounds like we're good to go," Axel told the two boys on the other end of the line. "Are you gonna pick us up…? Nine-thirty? Okay. Sounds good. See you soon. Okay, bye." He shut his phone and glanced at Roxas. "Better get your stuff together. They'll be here in half an hour. Oh. And bring a swimsuit."

"A swimsuit?" Roxas jumped the last few rungs of the ladder. "It's the end of September!"

"It's also seventy-something degrees outside. We're going swimming at the water park section, according to Demyx," Axel's expression was something akin to a grimace. "And what Demyx says concerning water usually goes."

The two boys gathered the items they would need for their excursion and went downstairs to wait for Demyx and Zexion. About half an hour later, the doorbell rang. Axel opened the door to find Demyx standing there grinning.

"Why do you look so happy?" Axel cocked an eyebrow.

Demyx blushed and his grin faded. "N-no reason."

Axel glanced over his shoulder at Zexion. "Kairi?"

"Kairi. She's the reason Demyx wanted to go in the first place. Apparently her dad's the one who runs the place, and she's there most weekends. Our little Demyx has just never had the guts to go," Zexion replied. "I merely fulfilled his wish by suggesting it."

"I have too! Just… not with you guys." Demyx's blush deepened.

"What, do we embarrass you or something?" Axel grinned and punched him lightly on the shoulder.

"Come on. If we want to get there before it gets crowded, we'd better go," Zexion dragged Demyx after him as he headed back to their car. Axel and Roxas glanced at each other and then followed them.

"You two'll have to sit in the back seat. I already called shotgun," Demyx shrugged apologetically as the four of them got into the white mini-van that belonged to Zexion. "Don't do anything naughty back there."

Roxas stared at him in horror. "What do you think we'll do? Axel's like my big brother. That's gross!"

Axel glanced at him. "Big brother my ass. You totally wanna tap this," He waved his hands over his body, earning a smack from Roxas.

"Do not!"

"Shut up, lovebirds, I'm driving here." Zexion's sharp words silenced them into smothered giggles.

They arrived at the amusement park just before ten o' clock. Zexion was fed up with the antics of his passengers and threatened to leave them at the park to fend for themselves. When Axel replied that he could get along fine with two such good-looking friends nearby, Zexion promptly hit him and stalked up to the ticket counter, a horrified Demyx and Roxas following behind him.

The four of them went to the part of the park with the rides first due to Demyx's reasoning that once the sun rose a little more, it would be warmer and therefore more suitable swimming weather. Roxas nearly lost his meager breakfast when they went on the fastest rollercoaster in the place, the Speed Demon, and Axel had to hold him up to stop his wobbly legs from collapsing under his weight. Thanks to his newfound fear of heights, Roxas resigned himself to keeping his eyes tightly shut whenever they rode something that went more than ten feet off the ground.

Around eleven o' clock, Demyx and Zexion ran off to find food, leaving Axel and Roxas to their own devices.

"I wanna go on the Ferris wheel," Axel told Roxas as they approached the enormous structure.

Roxas winced as he craned his neck to look up at the top arc of the circular metal ride. "Axel, I'm not so sure that I can handle that…"

"I'll be right next to you. You don't even have to open your eyes or anything." Roxas sighed. He couldn't argue with logic like that. He followed Axel into one of the empty gondolas on the next available ride with trepidation, still doubting his ability to keep his breakfast down.

He squeezed his eyes shut when the wheel began moving, and was surprised when Axel placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Relax. You're fine, Roxas. Trust me, the only way you could ever fall off this thing was if someone pushed you."

Only slightly reassured, Roxas kept his eyes closed as they ascended into the sky. The wind picked up as they came closer and closer to the top of the Ferris wheel's arc.

"Open your eyes," Roxas was so startled by Axel's whisper in his ear that he did open them. The view that greeted him was worth the fear that coursed through him. The air at the top of the wheel was crystal-clear, allowing him to see for miles. The sun glinted off the river that wound through the hills in the distance. The Ferris wheel paused at that moment to take on new passengers at the bottom.

The blonde boy turned to Axel. "This is amazing!"

There was something in Axel's small smile that Roxas had never seen before, and it intrigued him. "Y'know, I heard once that if you profess your love to someone at the top of a Ferris wheel, then it will last forever. It's kinda like the whole Japanese thing with the red string tied to your finger."

Roxas stared at him in confusion. "What?"

"I guess what I'm trying to say is-…" A particularly strong gust of wind buffeted the gondola they were in, causing it to rock back and forth. Roxas squeaked in terror and buried his face in Axel's chest. The redhead stared at him incredulously and then placed a hand on his back. The Ferris wheel began moving again, beginning to start its descent.

Roxas heard him whisper something, but he was concentrating too hard on keeping the contents of his stomach where they belonged to understand what he said. When their gondola reached the bottom of the wheel, the only indication of Axel's strange words was the hint of a sad smile on his lips.

~::~

"Why did you make that poor boy go on the Ferris wheel? He could've died of fright!" Demyx gave Axel a good scolding over their lunch of pepperoni pizza and nachos.

"I won't do it again, Mother," Axel sighed as he took a huge gulp of soda. "He agreed, though, just so you know."

Demyx turned to Roxas and patted his shoulder. "Don't let him coerce you into doing things that may be potentially harmful, Roxas."

Roxas laughed half-heartedly and shoved him away. "Fine, Mommy dearest."

"Does that make me the father?" Zexion asked wryly.

"Daddy, tell these bad boys to get their actions in check!" Demyx waggled at finger at him. "I don't want our boys to go around acting like a pair of hooligans!" Several people sitting around them glanced over, mouths open in shock.

"People are gonna get the wrong idea if you keep talking like that," Axel smirked. "Oh look, that family over there just took their kids and ran out of here."

"Shut up! It's not my fault I'm a mother at heart!" Demyx laughed, throwing an arm around Zexion's shoulders. "Isn't that right, honey?"

Zexion glanced at him. "I'm going to kill you if you damage my reputation."

Demyx backed off, holding his hands up to placate him. "Sorry!"

They hung around a few minutes after eating until Demyx informed them that it had been long enough for them to go swimming safely. The four of them tramped over to the water park side of the place and went into the changing stalls to put their bathing suits on. Roxas loathed to get his precious hair wet, but at least he could cool off for a while. Axel's strange behavior on the Ferris wheel left him too confused for his liking.

Demyx and Zexion were already waiting for him when he emerged from his changing room clad in a pair of sapphire blue swim trunks. Demyx's were pale green and sported leaping grey dolphins. Zexion's were simple black with silver streaks.

"Where's Axel?" Demyx asked. The others shrugged. The dirty blonde boy walked over to the stall occupied by Axel and rapped his knuckles on the door. "Come out already!"

"No! I don't wanna!" came the reply.

"Why?"

"I… Oh, fuck it all." The door swung open.

When Roxas saw Axel, he burst out laughing. Axel's bathing suit was baby blue with pink and purple flowers with smiley faces on them all over it. The redhead's cheeks turned redder then his hair, and he tried to retreat back into the changing room, but Roxas and Demyx dragged him towards the pool with Zexion following behind them, desperately trying not to laugh himself.

Axel, despite his embarrassing swim trunk predicament, refused to get anything past his feet wet. After submerging himself fully, Roxas swam over to the redhead and clung to the edge of the pool next to where he was sitting on the edge.

"Why won't you get in? The water's nice."

Axel looked down at him. "I just don't want to."

Roxas realized with a pang why Axel wouldn't get in the pool. "You're afraid of water, aren't you?"

Axel looked away. "You noticed, huh?"

Roxas pulled himself up out of the pool and sat next to him. "Y'know, you don't have to go very far. I'll be right next to you." He offered the redhead a hand.

Axel stared at him with something akin to surprise. "That sure sounds familiar."

Roxas smiled and took his hand. "I sure hope so, Mr. Immaculate Memory." He slid into the pool and Axel followed, wincing as his dry legs met the water. He waded out a couple of feet, making sure the redhead held onto his hand. After they had gone a few feet, Roxas glanced at Axel and asked, "So… If you don't mind me asking, why are you so afraid of water?"

The redhead sighed. "I had a traumatizing experience when I was younger. I was skating on a frozen pond, and I jumped a little too high… I bet you can guess what happened then."

"Oh." Roxas was incapable of any other answer. _He must be terrified, then. I hope I don't make it worse._

"You can let me go now," Axel said once they had gone to about the four-foot-6 mark. "I think I can do it by myself now."

Before Roxas could stop him, the redhead dived into the water. When he didn't come up for several seconds, Roxas began panicking and swam out to where Axel dove in. He stood on the tips of his toes to try and see where he went.

"Gotcha!"

Roxas screamed as someone tackled him from behind. His world was all bubbles and crashing water for a few moments before he resurfaced, laughing. "Axel, you douchebag! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" The blonde boy tried to pry Axel's arms off his waist, but the redhead held him tight.

"Axel, stop molesting Roxas!" Demyx surfaced next to them. Axel, face sporting a slight blush, let go and backed away.

Zexion arrived a few seconds later, shaking his head. "There are young children here. Please watch your language."

"Yes, Daddy!" Axel dove into the water as Zexion lunged at him. Demyx and Roxas stared at each other for a split second and then burst out laughing.

Roxas took a break from swimming for a while and sat down on the edge of the pool, letting one of the water jets tickle his toes. He was unable to stop his eyes from appraising Axel's gorgeous body every time he stood up in the shallower parts of the pool. The one time Axel caught him looking, the redhead smirked and struck a pose that would have made any male model jealous. Roxas rolled his eyes and tried to hide the blush creeping across his cheeks.

Soon the pool became too crowded for their liking, so the four teenagers got out and toweled off so they could change back into their clothes. Roxas hated the fact that Axel was covering himself up again, but he kept his feelings to himself.

On the way back, Roxas stared out the window, resisting the urge to reach out and hold the hand that Axel had placed on the empty seat between them. _I don't get it. I've lived with him for nearly two months, and I've never felt like this before. Pretty eyes, nice face, gorgeous body… What the hell am I thinking? I'm gonna make a fool out of myself if I keep this up._

Axel and Roxas said goodbye to the other two boys when they reached the von Fusen house. They walked up to the front door and Axel pulled out his key to unlock it.

"Hey, thanks for helping me keep my head on the Ferris wheel earlier…" Roxas said as they entered the house. "I probably would've puked my guts out if you hadn't."

"Well, you helped me get over my fear of water somewhat, so I think we're even. No thanks needed," the redhead replied.

They lounged around for a few hours in their room, playing with Sal, talking, and doing what little homework they had. Roxas felt content for the first time in a while, and it seemed to be infectious because Axel was in a better mood as well. This surprised the blonde boy. He half expected Axel to be pining for Larxene again after last night's occurrences, but he wasn't.

Larxene. Roxas wondered why Axel had felt that he needed to have sex with her right after she broke up with Marluxia. Had he merely seen it as an opportunity to win her back? He wished he could ask.

"Hey, you okay? You look kinda depressed, sitting over there in the corner like that," Roxas looked up to see Axel peering at him from the top of the ladder to his bunk bed. "Want some company?" Roxas nodded and patted the space beside him. Axel crawled over and sat down.

"I'm not sad. I'm just worn out. Today was fun, but really tiring," the blonde said.

Axel nodded and leaned his head back against the wall. "True. Chasing after Demyx certainly wears you out after a while."

He continued talking, but Roxas didn't really listen. He felt his eyelids droop lower and lower as his head rolled to the side, coming to rest on Axel's shoulder. The last thing he heard before he drifted off to sleep was Axel's quiet voice.

"Sweet dreams, Mr. Sunshine."


	6. Chapter Six: Realizations

**Author's Note:** Whoo! Chapter Six is done! I'm happy that I'm getting these finished as quickly as I am. I hate to keep people who want to read more waiting. Not much else to say here, so read on and enjoy!

~::~

"You're kidding me. His birthday is in two days? Why didn't he tell me?" Roxas was panicking. Demyx had just informed him of the fact that Axel's nineteenth birthday was coming up, and he had no idea what to get him.

"Hey, I don't control the man," Demyx shrugged. "Not my fault."

A week had passed since their trip to the amusement park. Roxas was so preoccupied with his newfound feelings for Axel and the redhead's strange behavior lately, the days passed in a blur. The first day of October, apparently Axel's birthday, was looming. Top that off with another strange message from Roxas's secret admirer earlier that day, and you could count the blonde boy as overwhelmed.

Axel was oblivious to the conversation Roxas and Demyx were holding, enthralled in the music blaring from his headphones. The bus they were in hit a bump, and Roxas's arm brushed Axel's. The blonde's heart skipped a beat and he scooted away at once.

Thankfully, Friday afternoons were usually peaceful. Roxas and Axel would do any homework they had, eat dinner, and then go back upstairs to talk. It was becoming a bit of a routine for them to sit on the balcony and converse in quiet tones. The blonde boy would have ample time to get his thoughts straight and decide on a birthday present for Axel.

"You look zoned out," Axel commented out of the blue as they headed to their room after dinner. "Something on your mind?"

_You, mostly._ "No, not really," He didn't look at the redhead. "I'm just glad it's the weekend."

"Good. I was worried you were fantasizing about Namine or something."

Roxas bit his lip to stop the acidic remarks that bubbled up in his throat from spewing out.

Once they were outside on the balcony, Axel lit a cigarette and let the smoke curl in wisps out of his mouth. Roxas tried to ignore the way Axel's lips looked when he took a long drag on the cigarette or when he talked, and he certainly didn't pay attention to the gleam in his emerald eyes and the way his body leaned casually against the wall of the house.

"Like what you see?"

Roxas flinched and met his eyes, a slight blush creeping across his cheeks despite his best attempts to cover it. "I'm not looking at anything."

"There's no harm in enjoying the scenery."

"I told you, I'm not looking at anything!" Roxas's words were so sharp, they made Axel's eyes widen in surprise. "I'm sorry. That was uncalled for."

"Nah, I understand," The redhead sighed, another cloud of smoke escaping from his lips.

"Hey, why didn't you tell me about your birthday being in a couple of days?" Roxas blurted out the question before he could stop himself.

Axel's eyebrows rose. "I don't want to make a big deal out of it. I'd rather not get a ton of special attention. It's just a birthday, right? Sure, you get to add another year onto your age as proof of making it that far, but what does it really matter? It's only a number."

"You sure don't seem to care about a lot of stuff," Roxas mused. "You don't believe in promises, you don't think love's what it's cracked up to be, and now you don't care about age. Is there anything you _do_ care about?"

"I…" Axel sighed and flicked the ashes off the end of his cigarette. "It's easier not to care. That way, if something ever lets you down, you don't feel it as much."

"You didn't answer my question."

Axel's eyes narrowed. "If you must know, there _are_ a few things that I care about, nosy, and _no_, I am _not_ telling you."

"Well, fine then," Roxas stood and glared down at Axel. "I'm going back inside."

"Roxas, wait," the redhead grabbed his arm as he turned to walk through the open balcony door. "Please, stay here. I'm sorry."

Roxas debated wrenching his arm free from Axel's grasp and storming inside, but the small part of his brain that seemed to like Axel more than normal screamed for him to sit down and talk it out like a man. "Fine," He turned to sit down and found his face inches from the redhead's. Blushing, he tried to scramble backwards, but Axel held him there.

"Look, I'm sorry. I know I'm an ass."

"Yes, I know that. What do you want?"

Axel winced at the tone of Roxas's voice. "I just wanted to know… Did you hear the last thing I told you on the Ferris wheel last Saturday?"

"No. Why?"

"Never mind, then," Axel crumbled the remains of his cigarette. He opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but no sound came out. Roxas felt himself lean forwards, closing the small gap between them.

A black ball of fur leaped into between them, causing Roxas to fall backwards. Sal meowed in protest when Axel tried to push him back inside. Roxas's cheeks felt a blush creep up his cheeks when he realized what the black cat had just interrupted. _Was I about to kiss him? Where the hell did that come from? I… do I really want to kiss him?_

"Sal, go back inside!" Axel growled as he grappled with the cat. "You could fall off of here and kill yourself!"

"Here, let me try," Roxas knelt next to the black cat and scooped him up in his arms. He stood and carried the surprised cat back into their room with a just as surprised Axel trailing behind him. After he set Sal down in his bed, Roxas climbed the ladder to his own bed and curled up on it.

"Don't go all depressed on me again," Axel called up to him. "You're no fun when you're like that."

"Like I care how fun you think I am," Roxas retorted, rolling on his side. He sighed into his sheets, trying to quiet the thoughts swirling in his head. He was so tired of always having something on his mind. The blonde boy would give just about anything to get a few moments of peace and quiet, free from his tumultuous mind. Even when he went to sleep that night, his dreams were laced with things he'd rather forget repeating over and over on the sidelines like a bad cheerleading squad.

~::~

Saturday morning dawned bright and early. For the first time in several weeks, Axel let Roxas sleep in well past their usual wake-up time. When he finally did wake up, the blonde boy stretched and rolled over to find himself staring into Sal's yellow eyes.

"Hi. What do you want?"

Sal meowed and poked his nose with a paw. Roxas sneezed in response and Sal hissed, backing away a few inches. Sal stepped forwards and poked his nose again.

"Seriously, what do you want?" It took Roxas's still half-asleep mind a few moments to realize that asking the black cat questions was pointless because he couldn't answer them. Sighing, he sat up and promptly banged his head on the slanted ceiling. "Ouch. Not cool."

Sal turned in a circle, meowing again. His tail twitched back and forth in irritation.

"Hold on a second, how did you get up here? The ladder's too steep for you to climb."

"Very observant of you, Mr. Sunshine," Roxas jumped and turned to see the top half of Axel's head peeking over the top rung of the ladder. "I wondered when you would wake up."

"You look like a creeper," the blonde boy replied. "Were you watching me sleep?"

Axel laughed and pulled himself up to sit on the edge of the mattress. His red hair was still tousled. Roxas surmised that he either he had been asleep up until a few minutes ago, or he was too lazy to groom himself. "Nah. I've been up for a couple hours, and Mom wanted me to check on you, so I carried Sal up here to do the dirty work."

"What, were you afraid I'd damage your face if you woke me up?"

Axel turned his head and pointed to a bruise on the side of his jaw, already fading. Roxas recalled when he punched him upon being shaken roughly awake last Sunday. "You did last time. I wasn't going to risk it again."

"So you let the cat do it for you?"

Axel shrugged. "I figured there was a smaller chance you'd actually land a blow on him. Less overall surface area."

Roxas scowled. "I don't think there's anything that has more surface area than your ginormous head."

Axel smirked and picked up Sal, somehow managing to descend the ladder backwards without dropping him or falling over. Roxas followed, rubbing sleep out of his eyes. The redhead glanced over his shoulder at Roxas as he placed Sal on the floor. "You're cute when you're asleep, did you know that?"

Roxas blushed furiously. "I what? Wait, you said you weren't watching me sleep!"

Axel grinned as Roxas looked away to hide the redness covering his cheeks. "You heard me. And I wasn't, I just saw your face when I set Sal down for a second. You were a lot less… oh, I dunno, _angry_."

"Angry?"

"Yeah. You have this semi-permanent scowl thing going on. Not the most pleasant expression to see everyday for hours on end."

Roxas glared at him. "Well, ex_cuse_ me."

"See? You're doing it again!"

"Shut up! I am not, you idiot."

Axel sighed and kept any further comments to himself. He stalked over to the bathroom and shut the door none too gently behind him. Roxas stared after him in dismay, worried that he might have hurt the redhead's feelings more than he intended to. However, he would rather let Axel's irritation simmer for a while and fizzle out then stoke the fire and have him blow up in his face.

Unsure what else to do, the blonde boy made his way down to the kitchen and stuck a couple of pieces of bread in the toaster. He took out a jar of cherry jam, almost puked when he opened the lid, and exchanged it for the grape jelly. After the episode with Namine in the backseat of her car, anything even remotely smelling or tasting of cherry gave him bouts of nausea.

Mrs. von Fusen walked into the kitchen, humming. She gave Roxas a cheery wave and grabbed a paper bag out of the refrigerator before clicking her way into the hallway in her high heels and business clothes.

"She's doing a book signing two cities over, apparently," Roxas jumped twice, once when Axel spoke, and a second time when the toast rocketed out of the toaster.

Gasping for air to calm his racing heart, Roxas juggled the hot toast onto a plate and carried it to the table with the jelly and a knife. He sat down, and Axel walked behind him, reaching over his shoulder and stealing one of the pieces of toast. He was out of the kitchen and the reach of Roxas's wrath before the blonde boy could even blink.

"Hey, give that back!" Roxas exclaimed. "I'm hungry!"

Axel poked his head through the doorway to the living room. "So am I. I haven't eaten yet."

"Yeah, well, you could make your own toast instead of being a lazy-ass."

"Nah, I'm good."

Roxas rolled his eyes as he disappeared into the living room. He heard the TV turn on and what he thought was a quiet chuckle from Axel. The blonde boy ignored it and drowned his remaining piece of toast in grape jelly before eating it in four huge bites. He set his plate in the sink and then walked into the living room.

Axel was sprawled over the couch, only half paying attention to whatever was playing on the television screen. He glanced up when Roxas came to stand beside him. "You need something?"

"Not really. Just wondering if we're gonna do anything today, or can I go back to sleep?"

Axel chuckled. "I dunno. Dad's probably going to go play golf with some friends soon. I don't have anything planned, and Mom's not gonna be back until tonight."

"Okay. Good night," Roxas turned to go.

"Don't you mean good morning?"

The blonde boy glanced over his shoulder at Axel. "No, I mean good night."

As he walked up the stairs to his room, the realization that Axel's birthday was the next day and he still didn't have a present for him hit Roxas like a thunderbolt. _I have no idea what to get him. I don't know enough about him to pick out something he'll like… Time to call in reinforcements._ The blonde boy entered the bedroom and sat down by his backpack, pulling his cell phone out of the front pocket. He punched in Demyx's number. The other boy answered on the second ring.

"Roxas, it's nine in the morning on a Saturday. Shouldn't you be asleep?"

Roxas laughed. "Hello to you too. Look, I need your help with something. You know Axel better than I do. I need to get him a birthday present."

Demyx was quiet for a moment. "Well, you remember that phoenix thingy you broke a couple weeks ago? He really loves those birds. Maybe you could get him something phoenix-related to replace it."

"Where the hell am I gonna get that?"

"I dunno."

A thought struck Roxas as he stared down at the checkerboard-patterned felt star attached to his backpack by a thin chain. "Hey, do you have a sewing machine?"

"Um… no. Why?"

"I need one."

"Obviously," Roxas could imagine Demyx rolling his eyes. "Oh. Wait a minute. Zexion has one at his house. His mom's a big sewer. I can put him on three way and we can convince him together."

A few moments of silence passed. Then Zexion's voice came over the speaker. "Demyx, what the hell do you need from me at nine in the frigging morning?"

"Oops, did I wake you up?"

Roxas didn't need to see Zexion's face to tell he was scowling when he responded, "No, of course not, I was only resting my eyes. Really, what do you want?"

Roxas decided to speak up. "Hey, Zexion. It's Roxas. I need to borrow your sewing machine to make Axel a birthday present. Would you mind if I came over?"

"You know how to sew?"

"Don't sound so surprised. Our little Roxas is full of hidden talents," Demyx crooned.

"You're an idiot," Zexion said. "And no, I don't mind, Roxas. However, you can only come over on one condition: Demyx brings you here. I'm not going to drive anywhere when I'm still half-asleep."

"But why me? I didn't do anything!"

"You woke me up. I'll see you two in an hour," Zexion then hung up.

After a moment of silence, Demyx said, "Well, you heard the man. Be ready to go when I get there. Bye!"

Roxas ended the call and let out a small sigh of relief, allowing himself a small smile. This would be one present Axel would never forget.

~::~

"I can't believe you're actually making this."

Roxas glared at Demyx over the top of the sewing machine in front of him. "Look, just because I haven't known him for very long doesn't mean he doesn't deserve a decent present. Besides, I do still owe him for that little figurine thingy. This is the next best thing I can give him as a substitute."

Zexion, who was sorting through a pile of felt on Roxas's request, glanced over at Demyx. "Will you just let the boy work? I personally can't wait to see how this turns out."

Demyx stuck his tongue out at the other boy and slunk over to the couch to pout.

Roxas finished cutting out the main pieces of the red-orange felt and set about pinning them together so he could sew it. Zexion walked over and watched him as he deftly turned the pieces of fabric under the needle.

"When did you learn how to sew? You're very good at it," Zexion asked when Roxas finished the main body of the phoenix stuffed animal he was making.

Roxas glanced over his shoulder and took the pieces of felt that the other boy offered him. "My mom taught me when I was younger. She always said that it's one of those skills that are useful no matter what you do. I can see the reasoning behind that now. I'm not the most artsy person in the world, but it sure does come in handy."

Zexion nodded in agreement and left Roxas to his work. Demyx returned from his sulking to watch as the blonde boy cut out countless feathers from the red, yellow, orange, and gold felt strewn on the work table in front of him. He hand-stitched the feathers to the wings on the main body of the bird. Two shiny black buttons became the eyes. The tail was streamer-like strips of the felt all sewn to the end of the body. He then stuffed it and sewed up the gap left behind.

Zexion and Demyx watched in utter amazement as Roxas turned what had been only felt and thread into a complete stuffed animal in the space of four hours. Roxas was glowing with pride as he stitched on the last detail and then set it down facing the three boys on the table.

"This thing is fucking _awesome_."

Demyx and Zexion, dumbfounded, nodded in agreement. The stuffed animal was about eight inches tall from the tips of its talons to the crest of feathers on its head. The wings looked almost life-like, there were so many feathers sewn onto them. The tail flowed out behind it like a river of molten gold. It was so cute, even Zexion almost squealed like a little girl just looking at it.

"Thank you for letting me use your sewing machine," Roxas turned to Zexion and smiled.

"You're welcome. I'm sure Axel will love this."

"If he sleeps with it, take pictures, please," Roxas and Zexion stared at Demyx. He held his hands up. "What? You never know when you'll need humiliating pictures."

Demyx took Roxas home after the blonde boy tucked the present away in an inconspicuous white paper bag. Axel barely looked up when Roxas entered their bedroom and stuck the bag in the closet.

"So how did it go?"

Roxas glanced at the redhead, seated on his bed and tapping away at his laptop. "Fine. I got you something for your birthday. If you try to peek, I'll kill you."

Axel smiled innocently. "I wouldn't dream of it!"

"Good," Roxas sniffed the air as he walked towards Axel. "Why does it smell like Chinese food?"

"Dad ordered some take-out for me before he left. I doubted that you ate lunch yet, so I saved you half of it. It's downstairs on the kitchen table."

Roxas nodded his thanks. He _was_ hungry. He had been working so intently, he forgot to eat anything when his usual lunch time came around. Luckily, the food was still warm. He scarfed it down with a glass of water and returned to his room after. Axel had disappeared, but Roxas heard him moving around behind the closed door of the bathroom.

Exhausted from four hours of almost non-stop sewing, Roxas pulled himself up the ladder to his bed and collapsed on it, a sigh escaping his lips. _I really, really hope he likes what I made him. I know I owe him and all, but it's so hard to know what he'll actually like because he never tells me anything about himself…_

Roxas jumped when his cell phone began ringing. He rolled over and pulled it out of his pocket. He recognized the number on the screen and almost threw it across the room. _Namine. Damnit._

"Hello?"

"Hey, Roxas. Can you hang out tomorrow?"

The blonde boy sighed with relief. He had a legitimate excuse to not go anywhere with her. He dreaded what would happen if she got him alone again. "I'm sorry, but tomorrow… Well, it's Axel's birthday. I can't."

Namine made a disgusted noise in the back of her throat. "Oh, well, if that's the case, I'll see you later." She ended the call.

Roxas was still puzzled by the mutual hatred between Namine and Axel. He'd never seen them do anything but call each other names and exchange glares, but nothing they did gave him any hint of their reasons for justifying the battles they fought. Zexion and Demyx seemed to know, but Axel must have sworn them to secrecy because they refused to say anything on the subject. It was downright infuriating.

"You're making the angry face again," Roxas looked up to see Axel clamber over the top of the ladder onto his bed. "Was that Namine?"

Roxas looked away. He reply was terse. "Yeah. So what if it was?"

"Hey, I wasn't trying to annoy you. I just wanted to know."

"Why do you hate her so much?"

Axel was caught complete off-guard by the question. Roxas met his startled eyes and just lay there staring into them, willing the redhead to give him an answer. Axel was the one to look away this time. "I… We just… Roxas. Please understand that I want to tell you, but… I can't." The desperation in his voice contrasted sharply with his usual sarcastic bite.

Roxas sat up and pulled his knees up to his chest. "Fine. It just makes me feel like you don't trust me. I… don't like that."

"I don't trust _anyone_. Goes hand in hand with thinking promises and all that shit is just that: Shit."

"Well, why not?" Roxas snapped, anger flaring in the pit of his stomach. "You've gotta start caring about something or you're gonna live one hell of a useless life. You don't even seem to care about your own friends sometimes, did you know that?"

Axel looked up, green eyes blazing with rage. "You don't know anything! You were right when you said I don't trust you. You haven't given me a reason to yet. When _you_ start caring enough to try, let me know!" With that, Axel jumped off the ladder and stormed out through the bathroom onto the balcony, slamming the door behind him.

Roxas stared after him in dismay. _Shit. Now look what I've gone and done._

~::~

Awkward silence pervaded the air between Axel and Roxas the next day. Despite it being Axel's birthday, he couldn't seem to even manage a smile or a hello to anyone who tried to congratulate him. Even Zexion and Demyx, who came over to celebrate at the request of Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen, couldn't cheer him up.

"Did something happen?" Demyx whispered to Roxas as Axel got up to retrieve the pile of present on the table. "He's so… depressed."

Zexion elbowed him in the stomach as Axel sat back down, holding their gifts. Axel looked over at them and actually smiled for the first time that day. "I sure hope you three didn't give me any gag gifts."

Demyx grinned. "Oh, come on, Axel, we're not _that_ mean!"

Axel's parents, seated on the couch on the other side of the coffee table, seemed to breathe a joint sigh of relief. They hated to see their son so down, especially on days such as this.

From Demyx, Axel received an Evanescence CD he had wanted to buy for weeks. Zexion gave him three volumes of poetry. Axel's parents gave him cash and gift cards that he could use as he saw fit. Roxas fidgeted nervously as Axel reached for the last present, the one containing his gift. The blonde boy was terrified that he would hate it, or even worse, he would blame him for the destruction of the original phoenix all over again.

"Roxas, this one is from-… _Holy flying shit_." Axel's eyes widened as he lifted the stuffed animal from its bag. He turned it over and over in one hand as he read the note Roxas stuck in the bag with it, rendered speechless. His parents were so stunned by it that they forgot to reprimand him for cussing on a Sunday. Axel turned to Roxas, opened his mouth, closed it, and then opened it again. "You _made_ this? In _four hours?_ You've gotta be shitting me. Where's the tag?"

Roxas blushed to the tips of his ears. _He likes it. He likes it. Oh my fucking God, he actually likes it_. "Yeah, I made it… I know it's not perfect, but I did my best."

"Not perfect? It's _gorgeous_. And really, really cute. I can't even see where you stitched all of the feathers on… and you did it by hand!" Roxas felt like he as about to explode with pride and happiness. He had done something right. _Maybe he'll really notice me now_.

Roxas's eyes went wide when Axel hugged him and whispered "Thank you" in his ear. The redhead drew back, beaming.

"Y-you're welcome," Roxas fought to keep himself from babbling like an idiot.

"Thank all of you," Axel grinned as he turned his head to look at everyone else. "I really love the gifts you gave me. It means a lot that you care so much."

The six of them ate slices of the red velvet cake Mrs. von Fusen had baked earlier, and then Zexion and Demyx left, leaving Axel and Roxas to go back to their room once Axel's parents hugged and kissed him multiple times.

The redhead's smile vanished the instant he set foot in the bedroom. His expression turned to one of distaste as he set his birthday presents on his bed and then sat down beside them, burying his face in his hands.

Roxas walked over, desperately wanting to ask him what was wrong so he could comfort him. However, he knew Axel probably wouldn't want to talk about it, so he turned to walk away.

"Wait," Roxas froze as Axel grabbed his arm. The redhead's fingers were wet with what Roxas thought were tears. His suspicions were confirmed when he turned to face him. "Will you sit with me?"

The blonde boy sat next to him without a word. Axel leaned his head sideways so that it rested on top of Roxas's. Roxas was sure he was blushing.

"I'm sorry I'm such an asshole," Axel said in a small voice. "I really do appreciate the gifts, but I didn't want a celebration. I don't really think I deserve it. I never do anything for any of you."

"Shut up," Roxas hadn't meant it to sound that harsh. He cleared his throat awkwardly and continued. "You can't honestly say that. You're our friend. That's what friends do, isn't? Have fun together, give each other gifts, and stuff like that. You don't have to do anything for us."

"But I should. I thought about what you said, about not trusting people… and you're right. I don't, but I should. Trusting you is the first thing you deserve."

Roxas stayed silent, unable to come up with an appropriate response. Axel seemed to sense this, and didn't press the blonde for an answer. Minutes ticked away as they just sat there, saying nothing, watching the light outside the windows turn red-gold.

Without warning, Axel stood and grabbed Roxas's hand. "Come on. I want to go to the balcony." Roxas didn't protest as the redhead dragged him outside. They sat down, shoulders just touching, to watch the sunset firsthand.

"Is it like this back where you used to live? I heard the sunsets there are amazing," Axel's voice was quiet.

Roxas shook his head. "No. It's… quieter. Less traffic sounds. And the sunsets… well, you'd have to see one there to tell me which you thought was better. It's still the same sun though, right?"

"I'd like to see your hometown sometime. Then maybe I _could_ tell you which sunset is better."

More silence invaded the air around them as the sun sank lower and lower. Roxas wanted to curl up in the redhead's lap and fall asleep, but he doubted Axel would take kindly to such a blatant disregard of personal space. Axel glanced at him occasionally to make sure he wasn't asleep.

"Tell me something," Roxas looked up at Axel when he finally spoke. "If you don't mind me asking… why do you like Namine so much?"

Roxas was stuck for an answer. He fumbled with words in his mind for a few moments before he managed to say, "She's really pretty."

"Is that it?"

The blonde boy bit his lip. "I… I dunno. I just _do_. I can't explain it."

"She gave you a blowjob last Friday, didn't she."

Roxas's stomach lurched and he stumbled inside, making it to the toilet just in time. He vomited, hoping Axel wasn't watching. The redhead was, however, and handed him a glass of water to wash his mouth out with once his stomach settled.

"I take that as a yes," Axel said when Roxas straightened up, expression unreadable. "You should have told me instead of letting her tell it to Kairi, who then blabbed to Demyx. You know he can't keep secrets from me."

Roxas, despite still feeling light-headed, snapped at the redhead. "Oh, yeah, like I was gonna tell you that, since you hate her so much. You would've killed me!"

"Am I killing you now?"

Roxas wanted so much to scream _yes, yes, you're killing me because sometimes I think I might have feelings for you but then I don't and Namine and Larxene and I love you I love you I love you…_ but instead he let out a distressed sob.

Axel hugged him, his arms wrapping around the blonde boy like a protective shield to ward off any more evils that might try to harm him. Roxas broke down into sobs, muffled by the fabric separating him from Axel's chest. They stood like that until Roxas's tears ran out.

"Please don't cry. It makes me feel like I did something wrong," Axel's voice was so quiet, Roxas could barely hear it, even close to his ear. "I want you to be happy, after everything you've gone through in the last couple of months. Losing someone you love is living hell."

Roxas sniffed. "Will… you tell me about that boy you mentioned? The one who was your best friend?"

Axel looked down at him. "I don't think that's a good idea. One person crying is enough. We don't need two teenagers blubbering like girls at some sappy chick flick."

Roxas managed a tiny smile. "Nice comparison."

Axel grinned and they went to sit on the balcony again. This time, however, Axel pulled Roxas into his lap before the blonde could escape his grip. Roxas's cheeks turned scarlet, which was amplified by the last red-orange rays of the dying sun. When Axel wrapped his arms around his waist, he almost screamed.

"I used to live in a place called East City, a long way away from here, farther than where you used to live. I'd only been living there for a couple months when I met this guy from down the street. I wouldn't have even bothered to talk to him had he not looked like me. It was really uncanny… he had the same hair color, face shape, even down to how tall he was. The only difference was that he had blue eyes a lot like yours."

Roxas glanced up at him. "What was his name?"

Axel sighed. "Reno. That's what he was called. When I walked past him on the sidewalk, we both stopped and did a double take. The first thing he ever said to me was, 'Are you stalking me or something? I don't remember having a twin around here.' We talked for a while after that, and pretty soon, we were best friends. Turned out he was in my grade at school, and we hung out so much together, people actually started calling us 'The Twins.' He always found that really funny."

Axel paused for several moments. "We were best friends for about two years with very few fights before things got bad. His family got pretty fucked up, and his parents were divorcing. He always blamed other people for it, though, never them. One day I asked about it, and he just exploded. Started calling me names and throwing shit. He stormed out of my room, and three days later… Well, you know what happened. Thing is, no one ever did figure out where he got the gun from."

Roxas felt something hot and wet splash onto his cheek. He turned his head to see tears glistening on the redhead's face. "Hey, don't cry. Remember what you said?"

Axel smiled sadly. "I know. But it's hard not to…" His voice trailed off into a sigh. "Look, I'm sorry if I'm making you even more depressed, but honestly… it feels good to get that off my chest. The only other people I've ever told are my parents and a couple of my friends, but even they don't know the whole story."

"Did you tell _me_ the whole story?"

"Most of it. There are some parts you probably don't wanna hear."

Roxas didn't want to argue with Axel in the state he was in now. Any more pushing might send him in hysterics. The blonde boy nodded instead, and laid his head against Axel's chest. He could hear his heart beating, slow and steady.

"Thank you."

"For what?" Roxas was puzzled.

"For listening. For putting up with me. For a million other things."

"Oh. You're welcome, I guess."

Axel snorted. "You guess?"

Roxas closed his eyes as the sun disappeared below the horizon. "I mean, I live with you, so I'm obligated to put up with you to some extent. It's no big deal, though. You're no worse than any of my other friends."

"Hmph. I guess that's reassuring."

"You guess?"

"I guess."

Roxas smiled sadly into the darkness. _He's so damn strong… I wish I could do more to help him, though. I feel so useless, just sitting here like an idiot and letting him suffer._ Something struck a chord in the back of his mind, and he had to choke back a cry of alarm. _Shit_.

_I love him._

_I love him._

_I really fucking love him_.


	7. Chapter Seven: Incoherency

**Author's Note:** Holy flying cheese pickles, dood. I finished this in _two days_. I think Axel and Roxas were out for revenge or something... I pulled an almost all-nighter to finish this. I seriously hope this was worth the loss of sleep. Please tell me what you think!

~::~

_One month. Just one more month._

Roxas was lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. It was the middle of the night, but he was unable to sleep. After his internal admittance of his love for Axel three days before, sleep was hard to come by. The excitement over his upcoming birthday at the end of the month was also partially to blame. Eighteen was a big number. The blonde boy sighed and rolled on his side, closing his eyes. It was dark enough that it made no difference whether or not they were open.

Something rustled in the darkness. Roxas froze and listened intently. Axel, below him on his bed, was moving. Roxas peeked over the edge of his bed to see the redhead stand and stretch before walking over to the bathroom.

_He's never done this before… He usually sleeps like a log._

Roxas kept his eyes on the shadow the scarce moonlight filtering through the blinds on the windows made as it crossed the room and disappeared into the darkness of the bathroom door. Instead of switching the light on like Roxas thought he would, Axel continued out onto the balcony. Curiosity tugged at him, willing him to follow, but something else in the back of Roxas's mind told him Axel wanted to be left alone if he was doing something in the middle of the night.

The blonde boy rolled over onto his other side, facing the wall, and sighed. He would never get to sleep now, not with this curiosity on top of everything else. It didn't help that he had a Chemistry test the next day.

Quiet footsteps alerted Roxas that Axel had returned from his excursion to the balcony. The blonde tried to make it seem as if he were really asleep as the footsteps came closer. The ladder to his bed began trembling, and with a pang of terror Roxas realized Axel was climbing up to his bed. His eyes snapped open. _What's he doing? Oh God, oh God, pretend like you're asleep, idiot!_ He closed his eyes again and kept his breathing regular despite his racing heart.

Axel barely rustled the sheets on Roxas's bed as he pulled himself up onto the edge. Roxas fought the urge to turn over and push him off. The redhead crawled over to sit beside Roxas, bunching his knees up to his chest. The blonde watched him through the corner of his eye as he stared down at his face with an unreadable expression.

"Roxas, I'm sorry…" The blonde boy didn't know if he was talking directly to him, but he refrained from answering, intrigued by what he had to say. "I want to care for you, I do, but… You'll never see me the same way I see you. Never. So I can't care… it would hurt too much if I did."

Roxas's heart skipped a beat. He was so stunned he could barely process what Axel said. _Wait, how does he see me? Why would caring hurt so much? I don't get it. Please, just tell me to my face!_

A gentle hand placed itself on Roxas's head and began stroking his hair, washed clean of all the hairspray used to keep it in its usual spiky style. "Your hair is so soft… and you _are_ cute when you're asleep. You're just so… perfect. I wish you knew…" _Damnit, I wish I knew why you're talking like this! You're driving me insane!_

Axe sighed and withdrew his hand, backing off the bed until his feet touch the top rung of the ladder. He paused for a moment, as if taking in Roxas's sleeping form, and then disappeared beneath the edge of the bed.

Roxas could have screamed until his throat was raw and his lungs couldn't function anymore. Axel was infuriating, unfathomable, irresistible, and he was too stupid to comprehend any of it, any of _him_. It wasn't that he didn't want to; he just _couldn't_ for some reason. Axel was just too complicated a puzzle to figure out.

Sleep eventually did come, but it was restless and full of troubling dreams. Roxas woke up drained the next morning, barely able to climb down the ladder without falling over. Axel was forced to catch him several times as he stumbled over objects and sometimes even his own feet.

"You're acting like a zombie," the redhead said, worry in his eyes. "Did you sleep at all?"

Roxas gave him a non-committal grunt and went to change and fix his hair. Even his usually gravity-defying spikes drooped somewhat no matter how much hair spray he put on them. Sighing, he cleaned up the counter and let Axel have the bathroom for himself.

Twice that day at school he fell asleep in class, earning him a stern gaze from Mr. Knightley and several balls of paper thrown at him from Mr. O'Dell. He dozed off on the bus ride home, and Axel almost had to carry him back to the house.

"I'm going to sleep," Roxas announced the moment they set foot inside.

"What about homework?" Seeing the weary expression on the blonde boy's face, Axel let him go without further question.

Roxas curled up on his bed and drifted to sleep the moment his heavy head hit the pillow.

He dreamed of Axel. He and the redhead were sitting together on the balcony as they had done countless times in the last couple of months. They were talking about something, but Roxas wasn't really listening to the conversation. He stared at Axel, drinking in the way the setting sun made his skin glow, the way his lips curved in a graceful arc when he smiled, and a million other tiny things that he would never have thought to look for before. Axel broke off mid-sentence and leaned forwards, his lips hanging open just the tiniest fraction…

The scene changed. They were now sitting on top of the Ferris wheel again, staring out over the patchwork landscape of brown, green, and gray. Roxas was holding onto Axel's arm like his life depended on it, but he didn't feel afraid. He felt safe, protected by the redhead's presence at his side. This time he was the one who leaned in, but he was thwarted again when the dream took a darker turn.

The bottom of the gondola he was seated in fell away, leaving Roxas hanging onto nothing but Axel's arm and the frantic prayer cycling through his head. _Don't let me fall. Don't let me fall_.

"I'm sorry, Roxas… I can't care…"

Roxas's hand slipped down the fabric of Axel's sleeve. He tried to lock their fingers, but Axel withdrew his hand, his face wearing an expression of intense sorrow. With a scream, Roxas dropped into thin air. He fell down, down, down into a darkness that was so thick it was tangible. His feet touched a ground that he could not see, and a familiar voice whispered in his ear as hand tugged at the zipper of his jeans.

"Tell me if you want me to stop…"

Roxas's stomach lurched as the darkness in front of him molded into the shape of Namine, changing color to match her hair and clothes. He tried to back away, but felt a cold metal wall behind him. He twisted away and ran to the right, only to run into another wall. He soon realized that he was trapped in this small area with Namine, smiling innocently as she walked towards him.

"Last chance."

Roxas screamed and began pounding on the walls, searching desperately for a way out. Namine came ever closer as he searched in vain for an escape.

"Axel! Axel, please help me! I don't wanna do this anymore… Please!" he sobbed, falling to his knees. Namine's footsteps stopped. Roxas turned apprehensively to see Axel in her place, holding out a hand.

"I can't promise you much, but I'll do my best…"

The blonde boy took the hand he offered, and a violent spasm ripped through his body.

Roxas awoke with a start. Someone was shaking his shoulders, calling his name. "Roxas! Yo! Are you okay? Wake up!"

The blonde's eyes snapped open and he sat up, breathing heavily. "Holy shit."

"Were you having a nightmare?" Axel's green eyes met his. "You were screaming your head off a second ago."

"I… yeah, I was," Roxas gasped, gulping in air to calm his heart. "I'll be okay, though. Just… scared."

"I can see that. You're white as a sheet," Axel placed a hand on the top of Roxas's head. "You'd better get up, now. Mom said that dinner's ready. Wouldn't wanna miss a meal, would we?"

Roxas sat up and followed Axel down the ladder shakily. He stumbled down the stairs and faked a smile on Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen's behalf. "What's for dinner?"

Dinner, as it turned out, was hamburgers and French fries. Roxas ate mechanically, mulling over the events in his dream. Half of it didn't make any sense, and some of it made so much sense that it hurt.

"Um, Roxas?"

The blonde boy looked up at Axel. "What?"

"Are you trying to eat your fork or something?"

Roxas turned red when he realized he had been chewing on his empty fork for nearly a whole minute. He set it down on his almost-empty plate and shoved three fries into his mouth to forestall any stupid remarks he might have made.

Laughter danced in Axel's eyes, but he stayed quiet. His parents barely seemed to notice, they were talking so intently to one another about something Roxas couldn't quite make out.

After they finished eating, the two boys returned to their room. Roxas curled up on his bed and moped for a good ten minutes before Axel managed to drag him out onto the balcony. "Quit being so depressed. It's not fun to see you like this."

Roxas was unable to come up with a response he found appropriate. His thoughts were a swirling mass of incoherency. Instead, he just let his head roll to the side until it met Axel's shoulder with a gentle bump. Axel's eyes widened, but he refrained from commenting.

"You're warm."

"You sure that's not just the sun?"

Roxas closed his eyes. "I'm sure. You're really warm… I think I might just fall asleep right here."

"Don't you dare fall asleep again, not after all of that food. You might have another nightmare, only this time it'll be about giant French fries taking over the world or something."

Roxas turned his head to look up at Axel, cocking an eyebrow. "You're kidding, right?"

Axel grinned down at him. "Maybe. Let's not test my theory though, okay? You're so much more interesting when you're awake."

Roxas returned to his original position and sighed. "I'm not much better than asleep at this point. I can barely think straight, let alone keep anyone talking to me interested for any length of time."

"But I find you _very_ interesting."

"Why?" Roxas's words opened into a cavernous yawn.

Axel paused to think. "I dunno. I just do. I'm not too good with explaining things."

_That would explain an awful lot about last night, then. You can say just about anything when you think I'm not listening, but you're too much of a scaredy-cat to say it to my face. Just tell me what you mean for once, damnit!_

Roxas yawned again. "Well, if that's the case, I'm going to sleep now."

"No, don't!" The pleading tone in Axel's voice made Roxas's open his eyes and look up at him. "Really. I guess… I like talking to you because I think you sorta kinda maybe get me more than other people do, sometimes even my best friends and parents. I… I like that."

A small fragment of Roxas's brain screamed in delight. However, he kept his response cool and calm. "I find that an acceptable answer. I'll stay awake."

For a few minutes after that, they sat in amiable silence, Roxas focusing on nothing but the steady rise and fall of Axel's chest beneath him and the way the sun looked as it sank beneath the horizon in a blaze of red-gold glory.

"Hey, Roxas," The blonde boy looked up at Axel, startled. "Bet you don't know why the sun sets red. You see, light is made up of lots of colors. And out of all those colors, red is the one that travels the farthest."

"Like I asked! Know-it-all."

The two of them laughed, but the amusement was short-lived, leaving the echoes of their voices to fade into silence once more.

"So, I heard that you're turning eighteen in a month."

Roxas sighed. "Don't remind me."

~::~

A month, as it happened, wasn't half as long as Roxas thought it would be. He had homework to do, tests to study for, conflicting feelings about Axel to deal with… He was swamped. It didn't help that after the seventh mysterious pink construction paper heart appeared he started doodling hearts on whatever surface he was writing on. This brought great amusement to anyone who noticed. Roxas had never been the romantic type.

The blonde boy began to notice something about the messages on the notes. When read one after another in the order he received them, they formed a sort of poem that seemed to be entirely written about _him_.

"Your black-and-white checkered backpack screams indecision from its place on the floor… Straps torn, seams ripped, is it the picture of time-worn care (or is it dejection?)… and it weighs down your spirit like so many tons of stone… Fluttering wing beats (or is it your fragile heart pounding?) echo throughout the corridors of the building… where you wander, a place where countless feet have trodden in the past. (Faith is not a sin.)… Now you are just a shadowy silhouette, a fragment of the person you once were… before your crystalline world shattered (_or did it burn to the ground?_) and was scattered to the four winds…"

Roxas sighed. Even though the meaning of these messages was more tangible, he still didn't get why anyone would be sending them to him. Judging by how Namine had been acting to him the past month, they weren't from her, but no one else gave him any reason to be suspicious, and the person who left them never gave their name.

Also, the seemingly meaningless letters at the bottom of each heart intrigued him. So far, one of them said "IPTALY," two "IPTAHY," three "IPTARY," and the newest "IPTAAY." Roxas wondered if they stood for something, but couldn't figure it out for the life of him.

Roxas's birthday crept up on him so stealthily because of his preoccupation he hardly realized that it was the day before. He had also forgotten for the first time in his entire life that his birthday was on Halloween.

"No way! That means we can throw you a party!" Demyx cackled with glee and ran off to make preparations when he was told.

Roxas sighed and watched him run off. He turned to Axel and Zexion. "Shit. This isn't gonna be good."

"That's an understatement," they chorused in response.

As it turned out, Seifer was already holding a party that night, and pretty much the entire school was invited to come, but on one condition: a costume was required.

"No, Demyx, I am _not_ dressing up. No way in hell are you going to get me in a costume, I don't care what that stupid little brat holding the party says."

The four boys had congregated in Axel and Roxas's room after school to put on costumes and open presents. Roxas was still light-headed from the realization that he was now eighteen years old. He'd momentarily gone into a spiraling depression when he remembered that his real parents and his old friends weren't there to celebrate with him, but the antics of his new friends soon made him almost forget the grief clinging to his heart.

"Please, Zexy? You'll look simply _amazing_ in this, I swear!"

Axel smirked. "Since when were you a fashion designer, Demyx? And I like that nickname. Zexy. I think it might just stick."

Zexion glowered at the pair. "I'm going to castrate both of you right here if you don't shut up."

"Oh, I'm quaking in my boots," Axel picked the outfit Demyx had chosen for him up off his bed. "Um, Demyx, what is this supposed to be?"

The dirty blonde boy left harassing Zexion to showcase the brilliant red costume in Axel's hands. "That, my friend, is a secret. Put it on if you really want to know. Actually, if Roxas puts his on first, then you'll know. You two are opposites."

Roxas stared at the mass of white fabrics and feathers that was his outfit. "I can tell you what it is already, if this is what I think it is. You're supposed to be a devil, Axel, and I'm… a fucking _angel_."

"Those two words don't really go together, do they?" Axel smirked as he walked towards the bathroom. "Demyx, you owe me big time for this."

Roxas went into the closet to change, tripping over the long white wings several times before he made it inside. He had no trouble getting into the white tunic, but attaching the wings to his back took some real work. His arms were sore by the time he got them adjusted so that they sat against his back, almost as light as the feathers that made them up. All in all, it took him almost twenty minutes to get everything fitting right.

He froze when he exited the closet to find Axel standing a few feet away, looking drop-dead gorgeous in a tight-fitting red leather ensemble that hugged his lean frame in all the right places. A long, whip-like black tail hung down from the back, tapering to an arrowhead at the tip. Two black horns poked out from his reed hair, which was spiked impossibly high, shooting out from his head like real flames.

"Damn," Axel breathed when he saw Roxas. "You've gotta be the prettiest angel this side of Heaven."

"And you're the sexiest devil this side of Hell," the blond retorted, blushing.

Demyx and Zexion exchanged a glance and then hurried to change, Zexion somehow having been convinced that his reputation wouldn't be damaged by the costume Demyx picked for him. Axel and Roxas were left alone, staring at each other in stunned silence. They were still there when the other two boys reappeared, Demyx bare-chested and wearing a merman tail, Zexion boasting elongated canines and a long, flowing black cape that contrasted sharply with his already pale skin.

"Stop standing there like idiots and get your make-up on!" Demyx herded Axel and Roxas into the bathroom and began instructing them on what to do to make their costumes complete. After another twenty or so minutes, Axel's face had been transformed into the picture of evil while Roxas looked even more innocent and boyish thanks to massive amounts of glitter and blush.

"Presents now!"

Roxas was taken downstairs and made to sit on the couch in front of a pile of birthday presents. Mr. and Mrs. Von Fusen came in from the kitchen and sat down to watch. Demyx's gift consisted of two new classical music CDs. Zexion gave him a coupon to a fabric store along with a small card that said "Good for one use of Zexion's sewing machine, provided you don't wake him up at nine in the morning on a Saturday." Roxas chuckled as he read this. Axel's parents gave him their apparently usual gift of money, and then he came to Axel's present.

_I wonder what he got me. After I gave him that handmade stuffed animal, I hope he didn't try to top it…_ He tore the paper off of the box and lifted the lid off. Inside sat a small black journal with a note taped to the front. "_I know you've always got a lot on your mind, so I thought I'd get you one of these journal things. It always helps me if I can get problems out of my head by writing them down. I think your should try it. P.S. Look inside._"

Roxas flipped to the first page, and a piece of paper fell out. He nearly burst into tears when he realized what it was. The picture in his hands was of a sunset many years ago, one spent seated on the clock tower in Twilight Town eating ice cream with his friends. The four of them were standing together, grinning lime a bunch of silly kids. Hayner had Pence in a playful headlock, Olette was rolling her eyes, and Roxas was laughing at the comical scene unfolding beside him.

"Axel, how did you…"

Axel smiled sheepishly. "I stole your cell phone a few days ago and asked your friends to send me some pictures of you guys. They sent like twenty. They're all stuck between the pages of that thing. What do you think?"

Roxas dropped the notebook and tackled him, almost dislodging his wings from his shoulders. "I love it! Thank you!"

Axel's expression was one of utter delight when Roxas regained his composure. However, the redhead said nothing but, "So. Now that that's over with, who's ready to party?"

~::~

The moment the four boys set foot into the party, Sora, dressed as a clown complete with giant shoes, found them and tackled Roxas, singing "Happy Birthday" at the top of his lungs. Riku and Kairi, dressed as a goth and a mermaid respectively, followed at a more sedate pace. Demyx turned bright red when Kairi smiled at him.

"We match," Demyx managed to splutter. Kairi laughed in agreement and hooked her arm in his, leading him inside.

Sora finished his off-key rendition of "Happy Birthday" and followed, grabbing Riku by the wrist. Zexion, Axel, and Roxas, somewhat bemused, went in last.

The party was already in full swing, having started an hour before. Seifer had promised that it would be a party to remember, and it already looked that way. Despite mostly minors being there, the alcohol was flowing freely, and already some of the partygoers were tipsy or worse.

"Don't you even dare drink anything that's not water," Axel told Roxas as they made their way out onto the patio behind the house.

"But water looks like vodka, doesn't it?"

Axel glanced over at him. "I'm not gonna ask how you know that. Just… be careful. Mom would kill me if I let you get drunk."

"Yes, Mommy."

"Hey! I thought that was _my_ endearing nickname!" Demyx appeared holding an enormous slice of pound cake on a Styrofoam plate.

Roxas grinned. "It still is, Mommy dearest. Axel's just usurping your power over our little family."

"Am not!" Axel glanced over Roxas's shoulder. "Shit! Namine at twelve o' clock."

The blonde girl walked up and gave Roxas a dazzling smile when he turned around. "Sorry I haven't been in touch that often. I've been busy."

Roxas returned the smile, albeit a nervous one. She was wearing a schoolgirl outfit with a skirt that only came down to a third of her thigh and a shirt that was unbuttoned almost to the point of being open.

"You've sure got the slutty little schoolgirl look down, don't you?"

Namine glared at Axel. "At least I'm not a soul-stealing demon."

"Hey, do you hear Zexion calling us? We've… gotta go!" Roxas grabbed Axel's arm and dragged him away.

"What… What are you doing?" Axel spluttered.

"I don't want you two making a scene here, let alone fight on my birthday, of all days!" Roxas hissed, finally coming to a stop beside a table full of sweets. He picked up a cookie and stuffed it in Axel's mouth when the redhead tried to protest. "Oh, hush."

Axel chewed and swallowed. "Geez, you're being awfully assertive. Didn't you know it's not polite to stick things in people's mouths uninvited?"

"In some cultures," The two boys laughed at Roxas's wry remark. "So now what?"

"We could always dance," Axel motioned to the dance floor, set up in the same spot as the last party.

Roxas wrinkled his nose. "No offense, but you don't look like much of a dancer."

"I'm not. I can still try, though, right?" Roxas found it hard to resist the imploring gaze Axel was giving him. After about ten seconds, he gave in and led the redhead over to the dance floor.

Several of the girls around them cooed over Roxas, complimenting his costume and calling him things akin to the "cutest little angel ever." The blonde boy politely fended them off and pulled Axel onto the center of the dance floor.

"So now what?"

"Wait for the next song, I guess," Roxas shrugged. They had arrived just as the previous song ended, and for the moment, only the chatter of the partygoers could be heard. In a few seconds, a new song started, the bass reverberating through every bone in Roxas's body.

"Kesha? Really?" Axel sighed and moved closer to Roxas. "Well, let's see how you dance, Angel." The redhead wrapped his arms around Roxas's waist and pulled the blonde boy towards him so their chests were just touching. Roxas turned scarlet as they began to sway to the beat, Axel smiling, Roxas trying to hide his embarrassment.

"You're not a bad dancer," Roxas informed Axel as they picked up the pace, following the crush of bodies around them.

"I guess, but I'm still worse than you were the first time you danced here."

Roxas's eyes widened and he almost fell over in shock. "Wait, you were actually here last time? I thought I saw you, but then I came home and you were at home, and our paper was finished… How?"

"Magic," Axel smirked. "I let you see me, genius. I wanted you to know that I was there if you needed me. Judging by how you acted with Namine, though, I surmised you didn't, and I left after you ran away from her."

"But how did you get there and back without me noticing? And how did you finish the paper?" Roxas was bewildered.

"I repeat, magic," Axel's smirk widened. "Nah, I left about three minutes after you did, and came back about ten before you. I already had the paper finished the day before. I stayed up late to do it."

Roxas shook his head. "You're crazy."

Axel lifted his chin up so their eyes met and their faces were almost touching. "Only for you, babe."

Roxas's already taxed heart felt like it was about to stop altogether. Axel's hold around his waist tightened and Roxas put his arms around his neck. The song changed to one with a much faster tempo, a sick guitar riff ripping through the air. Several people cried out in delight and grabbed partners to dance with. The group of dancers broke out into wild tangos and sambaing.

"Now _this_ is more like it!" Axel cried, changing their position so he was holding one of Roxas's hands in his. The redhead's other hand rested on the blonde boy's back. Axel led them into the dance, stunning Roxas with his abilities.

"But you said you can't dance!" the blonde boy exclaimed over the music.

Axel glanced at him as they turned. "I can't if there are no set steps. I never said anything about this kind of dance."

Several people stopped to watch the two boys whip through turns and steps, keeping in perfect time with the music. Roxas's face was red with exertion and embarrassment. Axel was only slightly less flushed, but his enjoyment was apparent. He smiled at Roxas every chance he got, encouraging the blonde without ever saying a word.

The song ended in a blare of trumpets as Axel let his hand slide down Roxas's arm, leaving the blonde's head just inches from the ground. Both boys were red-faced and breathing heavily. Many of the other dancers applauded them, and Axel led a madly blushing Roxas off the floor.

"You liar, you _can_ dance!"

"Like I said, I can do choreographed dances. Freestyle just doesn't do anything for me," Axel replied, leading Roxas over to one of the tables that held a cooler with bottled water. He picked on up and inspected it before twisting the cap off and taking a sip. "Good. This is just water. Here." He handed a bottle to Roxas, and the two of them found an empty table nearby to sit down at.

"Holy shit, man. That was hot!" Demyx plopped down into one of the remaining seats. Zexion followed and took the last of the four chairs around their table.

Roxas's face turned an even deeper red. "You saw that?"

Zexion's lips curved into a tiny smile. "Half of the people here saw you. Some of the girls looked like they were about to faint. I also heard someone suggest that you two get a room."

Axel burst out laughing at this. "Chicks are so predictable. You put two men together in a steamy situation, and they turn to mush."

Roxas took a huge gulp of water so he wouldn't have to comment on the current topic. The idea of him and Axel, alone in a room together… He shook his head. _Do not think about it. Do. Not._

"Are you imagining the room scenario?" Roxas flinched away when Axel reached out and ran a finger across the underside of his jaw. Demyx giggled nervously and stood, running over to the tables of food after muttering something about getting something to eat. Zexion merely shook his head and pulled a book out from under his cape, flipping it open to the bookmarked page.

"So how does it feel to dance with the Devil?"

Roxas looked up at Axel. He bit his lip to stop himself from blurting out something stupid. He gathered his thoughts and replied, "Really, really sweaty. Wings are not easy to dance in."

Axel chuckled and leaned back in his seat. "I noticed. Leather's not exactly my chosen dance outfit, but I suppose I made it work."

_I'll say. You were like walking, talking sex back there…_ Roxas shook his head._ What the fuck?_

"You okay?" Axel cocked an eyebrow.

"Tired. Need food."

Axel laughed. "Roxas caveman now? I get food. You sit."

"Shut up!"

Axel stood, grinning, and walked over to the tables, returning with two plates of food. Demyx trailed behind him with his own snacks. The two of them sat down and Axel handed one of the plates in his hands to Roxas. The blonde boy's eyes lit up in delight when he saw the contents of the plate he was given.

"Waffles. Fuck yes."

Zexion looked up from his book. "Seifer has _waffles_ at a party? I knew he was strange, but really?"

Roxas glared at him. "Shut up. I like waffles."

Axel glanced over at Zexion's watch. "Well, Mr. Waffle, we'd better decide what we want to do, because we've only got a couple hours before Mom's curfew kicks in. Should we dance again?"

Roxas slumped in his chair as he shoved half of a waffle in his mouth. "Too tired. Gotta catch my breath first," he said around his mouthful of food.

"Fair enough."

The four boys sat at the table in relative silence, the only sounds the chewing of Demyx, Axel, and Roxas and the turning of pages by Zexion. After they had finished eating, Axel took Roxas back to the dance floor so they could dance to one of his favorite songs. The heavy guitar brought up the memory of when Axel had introduced him to Evanescence in Roxas's mind. It was a different song, but Axel still seemed to know every note and word in it. As the blonde boy listened to the words, he realized the irony of the song. _Axel's definitely taking over me. I can't stop thinking about him, even when I'm supposed to be focusing on schoolwork or asleep. It's so… infuriating._

They danced through four more songs before they finally gave up and went to sit down again, panting and gulping water like their lives depended on it. Roxas was so giddy from the continuous contact with Axel that he could barely think straight. The rest of their remaining time at the party was a whirl of laughter and dancing and just having fun.

"Hey, Roxas, time to go," Axel whispered in the blonde's ear, lips just brushing his skin. Roxas felt himself blush for the millionth time that night. He nodded and Axel led him and the other two boys back to their waiting car.

Once they arrived back at the von Fusen house, Demyx and Zexion got into the car they had come in after saying their goodbyes and drove off. Axel almost carried Roxas inside, the blonde boy was so tired. The house was dark when they entered, and Axel motioned to Roxas to keep quiet.

"Mom and Dad must have gone to bed," he explained, and then led Roxas upstairs. The two of them took turns taking showers, and once that was done, they changed into their pajamas and curled up on Axel's bed to talk.

"Tonight was fun," Roxas yawned into the fabric of Axel's shirt. "But, I want to know… when I said you were crazy… what did you mean by what you said back?"

Axel stiffened beneath him with a sharp intake of breath. "I… Roxas, listen. You're probably gonna think I'm insane, stupid, or both if I tell you."

"I don't care. I want to know. You're so confusing, and I think you're the only person in the world who really gets you."

Axel sighed. "See, that's the thing. Even I don't get why I do things sometimes. I've done things completely against my better judgment, and I'm sure I'll do it in the future."

"You don't give me straight answers, either."

Axel was silent for a few moments. "You want answers? Fine. But don't tell me I didn't warn you," The redhead stood, gently pushing Roxas off him and onto the bed. He walked a few feet away and then stopped, his back to the blonde boy. "I really don't know what it is, but ever since I met you, I've had this… this _feeling_ in my gut. I've never had it before, and that scares me. I wanted an explanation, so I started thinking about it and researching it."

"And?"

Axel turned around half way, his expression one of desperation and confusion. "I think I love you."

Roxas's heart stopped in that instant. His breath caught in his throat. He could feel himself choking on the words he was trying to say. _I love you too, yes, please be telling me the truth._

But, as quickly as his elation came, it was replaced by burning rage. The blonde boy stood and walked forwards to stand in front of Axel. "You say you love me. I don't think I can believe you, though. You slept with Larxene last month, and you've been obsessing over her ever since."

"Shut up!" Axel growled. He stepped forwards, and Roxas backed away, realizing what a stupid decision that had been. The redhead kept advancing until Roxas was almost pinned against the wall. He tried to look for an escape, but before he could even move, Axel grabbed the collar of his shirt and shoved him up against the wall. "How the hell do you know about that? You weren't even _here_!"

Roxas narrowed his eyes. "I was in the closet, listening the entire time. I came home about ten minutes before you, right after Namine gave me that blowjob. You have _no fucking idea_ how much it hurt to hear all of that. Don't you realize how selfish you are? You love Larxene, then you love me, then you love her again. It's a vicious cycle, and that _can't_ be healthy!"

"I love you more than I ever could have loved her. She left me for some pink-haired asshole who thinks he's he center of the world. You've put up with me for three months with barely any complaints, unlike her, bitching about every little thing that went wrong. Roxas, you're driving me _crazy_. Absolutely fucking _crazy_. I want you to be mine, mine and one else's!"

"Then why do you-…"

Axel leaned forwards, capturing Roxas's protesting lips in a rough kiss heated with fury and passion. Roxas's heart was beating so erratically he thought it might stop altogether, but he didn't want Axel to let go of him. The redhead dropped him and leaned down even further, his hands skimming the sides of Roxas's abdomen and coming to rest just above the waistband of his pajama pants. The kiss deepened, and Axel's hands slipped even lower onto Roxas's hips, tugging at his pants. Roxas shove him away and collapsed, his knees too weak to support his weight any more.

"Fuck. Rox, I'm sorry. Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck," Axel gasped, stumbling to his bed and sitting down, burying his face in his hands.

Roxas crawled over to him and pulled himself up onto the bed beside him. He placed a hand on Axel's shoulder. "It's okay. I love you too."

The redhead looked up at him, eyes wide. He looked like he was about to cry. Without a word, Axel lay down on his bed and pulled Roxas down with him, curling around the smaller boy like a protective shield.

"What a pair we make," the redhead mused, kissing the underside of Roxas's jaw gently. "The awkward redhead and the innocent blonde."

Roxas snuggled into the warm cocoon of Axel's body. "Who cares?"

Roxas felt the other boy's lips form a smile on his neck. "Certainly not me. Happy birthday, by the way."

"Thank you."

_Things will never be the same._


	8. Chapter Eight: Decisions

**Author's Note:** I... honestly don't know what to say here. How do people come up with these things for every single chapter of a story, especially really long ones? Um... Anyways... Very fluffy chapter, I guess. Uh... Just read it. I'll leave you alone for now. Oh. But, before I go... I'd really appreciate reviews telling me what you'd like to see happen later in this story. I may not be able to use everything, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on where you think things may be going. Thank you in advance!

~::~

Roxas woke up the next morning wrapped in Axel's arms. The events of the previous night hit him with the force of a small hurricane, and he gasped out loud. A quick glance at the clock perched on the small nightstand at the end of Axel's bed confirmed Roxas's suspicions that it was ridiculously early.

"Damnit… We're both idiots."

Axel shifted beneath him. "What's that about us being idiots?"

Roxas glanced over his shoulder at the redhead. He could barely see his face in the waning moonlight seeping through the windows. "Shit, were you already awake? We are."

"I haven't been for long. Yes, I'm aware of that," Axel slowly sat up, taking Roxas with him. He set the blonde boy so he was sitting in his lap and rested his head on the smaller boy's shoulder. "So you meant what you said? About loving me?"

Roxas bit his lip. "Well, it's only been three months…"

"That's longer than you'd think. Besides, Romeo and Juliet fell madly in love in just a couple days."

"And then ended up killing themselves. That was really more lust, anyways," Roxas informed him.

"And this isn't?" Roxas shivered when Axel trailed a cool finger down the back of his neck. "Are you sure you don't just _think_ you love me because you find me physically attractive?"

"I hope not. Otherwise, I'm an even bigger idiot than I thought."

Axel chuckled and pressed a gentle kiss to the side of his face. They sat there for a few quiet minutes, neither sure what to say as a follow-up to the night before. Finally, Axel initiated the conversation again. "So what are we gonna tell everyone else? I doubt they figured anything out, other than the fact that we're idiots, as you stated before. And what about how we act? I'm pretty sure you're not the lovey-dovey type, but I'm cool with public displays of affection…"

Roxas wrinkled his nose and tilted his head to the side so he could see Axel's face. "I'm about as lovey-dovey as an angry grizzly bear."

Axel grinned. "I thought so."

Roxas looked down again, focusing on his hands, clasped in his lap and encased in Axel's much larger ones. "I don't know what we should tell everyone. I think Zexion might actually know, though he wouldn't have said anything if he figured it out before us. Demyx… Well, he's your best friend. I doubt he'll have anything to say against it. But your parents…"

"Shit," Axel sighed. "If they catch on, we're screwed."

"No kidding. I guess we'll have to hone our ninja skills so they don't catch us."

Roxas felt Axel's fingers explore a trail up his thigh. "Catch us… doing _what?_"

The blonde boy squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the million and one scenarios that flooded his mind. "Please don't do that. It's too early to talk like that."

"Too early in the morning, or in our little forbidden love?" Axel's fingers stopped their exploring and came to rest against Roxas's hips.

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Both. Like I said, I've known you for all of three months, if that much. I'm not planning on escalating the pace any time soon."

Axel didn't sound the least bit disappointed when he replied, "Whatever you want to do is okay with me. Take your time. Love _is_ something that you have to work at."

"Get that off a fortune cookie?" The two of them laughed. Roxas continued when the laughter faded back into silence. "I guess you're right. Please feel free to school me in the delicate art of cultivating love as you see fit."

"Kid, I'm just as clueless as you are."

Quiet seconds ticked away into minutes. It was still dark outside, but it grew steadily lighter as the sun began to wake up, stretching out its golden arms to grip the horizon and pull itself up into the sky. Roxas unwound Axel's arms from around his waist and walked over to the window, opening the blinds so he could see. The rolling hills below the house were bathed in ethereal pale gold light. A few birds trilled from their hiding places in the trees. Several wispy, pink-hued clouds scudded across the lightening sky.

Axel's arms found their away around Roxas's stomach again, wrapping him in a gentle embrace. The redhead rested his chin against the top of Roxas's head. "It's beautiful, isn't it? Sometimes I get up early just so I can sit out on the balcony and watch. I've written about a thousand poems just describing the sunrises here."

"I can see why," Roxas sighed. After a few moments of silence, he changed the subject. "Hey, Axel, now that we've both admitted our feelings, does that mean we're… a couple, or something? In a relationship?"

"Not unless you want to call it that. Personally, I hate labels."

"Then we just… _are_."

"We just are," Axel repeated, a smile curving his lips as he kissed Roxas's neck. The blonde boy shivered, and Axel drew back. "Sorry."

"No, it's not you. I'm cold."

Axel chuckled and released Roxas so he could go find something to put on to warm himself up. But, instead of going to the closet like Axel expected he would, the blonde boy crawled under the covers on his bed. "Hey, what are you doing?"

"Still warm here," Roxas's voice was muffled by the sheets. "Too tired to climb up the ladder."

Axel walked over and slid in next to the blonde boy, sighing. "Alright. You can stay here." Five minutes later, they were both sound asleep, bodies pressed together for warm and comfort.

~::~

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. You two… what?"

Axel sighed. Demyx was not the brightest person at times, but this was ridiculous. He'd been trying to explain the situation with Roxas and him for a good five minutes of their lunch period, but to no avail.

"Roxas and I kissed last night after declaring our love for one another. It's that simple," The redhead's patience was wearing thin. "You are not allowed to talk about this to anyone who might tell my parents."

Zexion, seeing Axel's frustration, provided further elaboration. He had grasped the news with surprising ease. "They're going to be just a bit more than friends. Like you want you and Kairi to be. It's the same basic concept, only in this case, it's Axel and Roxas."

"Oh," The disbelieving smirk on Demyx's face faded. "_Oh_. You two aren't gonna ignore me and Zexion, are you?"

Roxas smiled reassuringly. "No. We've already talked about some stuff, and we've decided that we're keeping everything under wraps. No public displays of affection."

"Right, my angry little grizzly bear." The look of utter confusion on Demyx and Zexion's faces was priceless.

When the bell signaling the end of lunch rang, Roxas made a slight detour from his route to History class to drop something off in his locker. When he opened it, another one of the pink construction paper hearts fluttered to the ground like an injured bird. He stared at it for a moment before picking it up. "_You say your heart beats for no one (or are you just telling more lies?) and it never will, but I beg to differ…_" the main part of the message read. "IPTACY" was written at the bottom.

"Not another one," Roxas groaned as he threw a binder into his locker and shut it with a bang. "Will it ever end?"

Axel noticed the discontented expression on Roxas's face when he skidded into the History classroom just seconds before the bell rang. "You okay?" he asked as Roxas sat in the empty seat next to him.

"Yeah. I just found another one of those paper heart things."

"And?"

"And I'm confused. This is the eighth, at least, and I still have no idea who's leaving them for me."

Axel shrugged and leaned back in his chair. His eyes flicked back and forth around the classroom, as if he were nervously watching the people within it. "Can't help you there, sorry. Believe me, if I knew, I'd tell you." The redhead's knee brushed Roxas's and the blonde boy's cheeks flushed. He shifted positions, trying to act as normal as possible. Axel smirked when he noticed, and bumped his knee again. "You're so cute when you blush."

Roxas looked down at his notes to see that while Axel had been talking, another tiny black ink heart had appeared on the corner of the paper. He scribbled it out and took a few deep breaths to quiet his pounding heart. _Man, I'm such an idiot. We only kissed once. That's nothing… Snap out of it!_

"Mr. Sinclair," Roxas looked up to see his Chemistry teacher, Dr. Steele, standing by Mr. O'Dell's desk. "Come here. I need to speak with you." The blonde boy flinched and followed him out into the hallway, Axel's worried gaze following him as he went.

"Did I do something wrong?" Roxas asked nervously as Dr. Steele shut the classroom door behind them.

His teacher stared down his nose as his distastefully. "No. However, I would like to know if you have been neglecting your studies in my class. Your grades have dropped off considerably the past three weeks," He held up a piece of paper that Roxas recognized as the last Chemistry test he had taken the day before. The number seventy-one was written in bright red ink and circled in the top right corner. "You have a sixty-seven in my class at the present time."

Roxas winced. He'd been so preoccupied with Axel and all of his other troubles, he'd let his usually good study habits fall through the floor and hadn't bothered to revive them. "I'm sorry. I've been having friend troubles lately. I'll bring it back up."

Dr. Steele replaced the test in the folder he was carrying and said, "I expect you to. Otherwise, I will be forced to give Mrs. von Fusen a call to inform her of your apparent lack of studiousness. You may return to class now."

Roxas resisted his strange urge to bow and retreated into the History classroom.

"What was that about?" Axel asked as he sat down.

"I have a sixty-seven in Chemistry," Roxas replied in a small voice.

Axel looked appalled by this announcement. "Are you kidding me? Oh, Roxas, if Mom finds out, she'll kill you!"

Roxas scowled at him. "Believe me, I know. What are we gonna do? I missed like, two and a half weeks of information."

"How in the hell…? You know what, never mind. There's only one way we can fix this."

"And that is?"

Axel's grin was one of pure evil. "Tutoring."

Axel's "tutoring" came in the form of Demyx, Zexion, and him all congregating in Axel and Roxas's room along with the blonde, armed with their Chemistry books and Demyx's unending charisma.

"Alright, Roxas," Demyx crossed his arms in front of his chest. He stood facing Roxas, who was seated on the edge of Axel's bed. "We can either do this the easy way, or the hard way."

"Don't you think you're making this a bit over-dramatic for a simple study session?"

Demyx glared at Zexion. "No. I'm merely instilling a feeling of determination and general will to work in our little Roxas."

"Um… the easy way, I guess?" Roxas swallowed, afraid of whatever the two options might entail.

Demyx grinned. "Okay, then I get you first. We'll try doing this individually at first, and if that doesn't work, we'll team up. Got it?"

"Memorized?" Axel muttered, smirking when Demyx shot a dirty look at him.

It only took thirty minutes for Demyx to admit defeat. Roxas was having trouble grasping the concepts he was being taught because Axel kept making less-than-innocent faces and gestures behind the dirty blonde boy's back, right in Roxas's line of vision.

Zexion took his turn. He made quite a bit more success, surviving for a whole hour until Roxas's stupidity became too much for even him to bear. "I'm not sure what you've got in that head of yours, Roxas, but it's not exactly genius. You're much too distracted for me to get through to you. Axel, your turn."

The redhead grinned. "Okey dokey. I'll see what I can do," He took Zexion's place beside Roxas on his bed. "Tell you what, kid, I find that I always work best with a reward system. I think we should try it instead of just drilling facts into your fragile synapses."

Roxas cocked an eyebrow. "What kind of reward are we talking about here?"

Axel leaned forwards and kissed the tip of his nose. "This kind." Demyx coughed loudly while Zexion rolled his eyes and opened the current book he was reading.

Roxas's cheeks turned the faintest shade of pink. "W-works for me."

Much to the other boys' surprise, Axel's little ploy worked wonders. Every time Roxas answered a question he was asked with the correct response, Axel gave him a small, gentle kiss. The blonde boy felt like his face was about to burst into flames, it was so warm, but he wasn't complaining. Whatever worked was okay with him. The kissing was just an added bonus.

Three full hours into the study session, the three boys were content with Roxas's learning curve and agreed to meet again the next day, and the next, as many days as were needed to aid Roxas's grade recovery.

"Thanks, guys!" Roxas breathed a sigh of relief as he followed Demyx and Zexion down the stairs and out onto the front steps. "You have _no_ idea what a relief it is to have you guys to help me."

"You're welcome," Demyx grinned. "Just don't let Axel distract you too much from now on, okay?"

Roxas blushed for the millionth time that day as he opened the front door for them. "I'll do my best. Bye."

Zexion and Demyx said their goodbyes and then stepped outside, heading back towards their car. Roxas shut the door and turned around to find Axel leaning against the wall.

"Mom just said that we need to go eat before our food gets cold," he informed the blonde boy. "I think we should heed her wise advice. I'm starving." Roxas nodded and followed him into the kitchen, where a large pot of potato soup was awaiting them. The two boys devoured their helpings plus several pieces of bread and a slice of apple pie each.

"You two eat like you've never tasted food in your life," Mrs. von Fusen chuckled as she set about washing that day's dirty dishes. "Are you trying to fatten up for winter?"

Axel poked Roxas in the stomach, earning a glare from the blonde boy. "Well, he's already pretty chubby, but me? I'm thin as a rail. I need it."

"Chubby? I am not chubby!" Roxas exclaimed.

"Alright, fine. You've still got your baby fat, then, whereas I seem to have lost all of it plus some extra…"

The two boys continued their argument over whether Roxas was chubby or not until they were well out of earshot of Mrs. von Fusen. At some point, Axel shifted the flow of the conversation down less innocent lines, and Roxas began to ignore him. The blonde boy grabbed a binder and his pencil case out of his backpack and clambered up the ladder to his bed to do his homework.

"…and there's always the chance that-… Are you listening to me?" Axel's rambling stopped abruptly when he realized Roxas was no longer in sight.

"No," the blonde called from his bed. "I stopped about five minutes ago. I've got work to do, sorry."

"Well, okay. You could've just stopped me and told me," Axel sat down with his back against the edge of his bed to do his own schoolwork.

Roxas peeked over the edge of his bed at him. "Stopping you when you're rambling is like trying to stop a hurricane with a vacuum cleaner. It just can't be done."

Axel craned his neck all the way backwards to look at Roxas, his face the picture of utter bewilderment. "Why a vacuum cleaner?"

"Because it wouldn't work. Duh."

Axel rolled his eyes and returned to his work, scribbling down answers on the History worksheet that was due tomorrow. Roxas went back to his own work, alternating reading his Chemistry book and completing his homework. He was glad that for once the workload was light so he could focus on Chemistry. A very large, very point-heavy test was coming up that Friday, and he needed the best grade he could get to even have a chance of bringing his grade up sufficiently to pacify Axel's mother if she asked about it.

The two boys broke off their working when the sun began to set, opting instead to go and sit on the balcony to talk for a while, and then resume whatever they had been doing afterwards. Axel seemed to want the make Roxas sitting in his lap a habit, because he pulled the blonde down before he could protest.

Roxas glared at him over his shoulder. "Are you gonna do this every time we sit down somewhere and it's just the two of us?"

Axel grinned and said, "Yes. Don't complain. You know you like it."

Roxas rolled his eyes and settled back against the redhead's warm chest. They remained silent for a few minutes after that, basking in the last golden rays of the sun. The blonde boy wished he could come up with something to talk about, but his mind went blank every time he tried to think of a decent topic.

Axel seemed to sense this and offered, "So, what does it feel like to be eighteen?"

Roxas shrugged. "Not a whole lot different. I'm still me. I've just got another year added onto my total. Nothing's really going to change until the end of the year when we graduate, anyways. I hoped I would feel wiser or something, but I'm still just as much of a stupid teenager as I was before."

"You're not stupid."

"You're just saying that."

Axel sighed. "Believe me, you'd know if I were lying about thinking that. I'm a pretty terrible liar most of the time," Roxas looked up at him, one eyebrow cocked in disbelief. "Really. Once, when I was younger, I broke one of my mom's favorite glass vases, and instead of coming up with some genius excuse blaming Reno for it, I told her that my invisible pet unicorn did it. Reno never let me forget that one. Mom laughed so hard, she forgot to punish me for breaking it."

Roxas quelled the giggle that rose in his throat. "You did not have an invisible unicorn."

"I still do," Axel pointed to the empty air between them and the wall beside them. "Don't you see her? Good girl, Petunia."

Roxas was unable to stop himself from laughing any longer. Axel, marveling at his own ridiculousness, joined him in his mirth. It took several minutes for them to compose themselves again, and when they finally did, the silence that was left behind was a comfortable one.

"Hey, Axel?"

"Hmm?" The redhead looked down at Roxas.

"I'm curious… what was Reno like?"

"He… I think you would've liked him. He liked the same type of music you do. He also excelled in the kind of teenage stupidity you claim to have an abundance of," Axel grinned. "He was always really, really happy, even if it seemed like the world was trying to completely fuck him over. That's why no one ever saw what happened to him coming, not even me. I'd seen him run off like that before, and all he usually did was go pout for about two hours and then come back, smiling bigger than ever. He was the one who always cheered me up when a bunch of horrible shit happened…"

Roxas shifted so that he was sitting almost sideways in Axel's lap. For a reason unknown to even him, he reached out a hand and placed it on the redhead's cheek. "You don't have to talk about it if it makes you sad. I don't want you to cry."

Axel smiled and turned his head to kiss Roxas's fingertips. "It's okay. I'll only talk about the happy stuff, how about that?"

"Okay."

Axel went on to talk about a million and one memories he had from his time with Reno. He told Roxas about the time they rescued a family of mice from Reno's attic and keeping them as pets for a whole week before his parents caught him. He also mentioned the day they figured out that their English teacher was mildly allergic to oranges and left one with a note attached to it that said "From the Orange Fairy" in one of her desk drawers.

Roxas felt sorry for Axel. He could see plainly how close he and Reno had been, and it obviously still pained the redhead to talk about. Those green eyes Roxas had come to like so much were hazy with pent-up anguish.

"It sounds like he was a handful," Roxas commented, and then changed the subject. "Hey, the sun's about to disappear."

"Very subtle diversion, Rox," Axel grinned when Roxas opened his mouth to protest. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing. I would too, if I were you. I'll stop now, if you're worried about me. I don't want your pretty blonde hair to turn gray on my account."

"Thank you for your concern."

Axel leaned forwards and pressed a gentle kiss to Roxas's lips, just barely brushing his skin. "But it's _honest_ concern. That's even better."

Roxas smiled, left momentarily speechless. _It was just a kiss. Pull yourself together._ After a couple of deep breaths, he replied, "You know what's even better?"

"What?"

It was Roxas's turn to lean in for a kiss, much to both his and Axel's surprise. The next thing the blonde boy said stunned him even more. "You."

"No," Axel shook his head. "The best thing is _you_."

Roxas laughed. "We're not gonna get into one of those cheesy fights over who loves who more, are we? Because if we do, I'm pushing you over the balcony."

Axel held his hands up defensively. "We are totally not! No way!"

"You're just scared of me, admit it."

"In your dreams, Mr. Sunshine."

~::~

That Friday morning, Roxas walked into his Chemistry classroom with trepidation. Even after two afternoons of almost constant studying, he still didn't feel prepared for the impending test. When Dr. Steele handed him his test paper, he was so delirious from fear he thought he saw the hint of a reassuring smile on the Chemistry teacher's usually frowning lips.

When Roxas looked down and realized the test was all multiple choice questions, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He steadily worked his way through them, racking his brains for the answers his friends had given him, and found himself the third student to finish. Dr. Steele took it from him and immediately began grading it, as if sensing Roxas desperately wanted to know if he failed or not.

After the bell rang, Roxas's teacher called him up to his desk. Roxas's test paper was sitting on his desk, face down.

"Did I…?" the blonde boy began to ask.

"See for yourself," Dr. Steele held it up so that Roxas could see.

The blonde boy's heart nearly stopped. _Ninety-eight. I got a fucking ninety-eight!_ "Holy crap. Seriously?"

The corners of Dr. Steele's mouth twitched in the beginning of a smile. "I'm glad to see that your studying has resumed. Keep up the good work."

Roxas felt like he could've flown. That was the highest grade he'd gotten in that class all year. _Maybe I should study with Axel more often…_

"You look really happy, "Axel commented when the blonde boy walked into English class and sat down with the usual group. "I take it the test went well?"

Roxas beamed. "Ninety-eight."

Demyx high-fived him, Zexion nodded, and Axel looked immensely pleased with himself. "We're geniuses," they chorused together.

Axel turned to Roxas, grinning. "In honor of your momentous achievement, I'd like to give you a prize."

Roxas raised an eyebrow. "A… prize?"

Axel's grin widened. "One date, courtesy of yours truly."

"…you're kidding me, right?"

Axel looked crestfallen. "What, you don't want to go?"

"Well, I mean… What if we run into somebody who knows your parents? That could end badly," Roxas replied. "The less conspicuous we are, the better."

"I'm not talking bout acting like we're a couple. I guess 'date' isn't the best word… How about I'll take you out to dinner?" Axel paused to think. "Nope, still sounds like a couple thing."

He went through several more ideas before Roxas became exasperated and exclaimed, "Fine! It's a date! Just please, please stop."

"Vacuum cleaner again?" The redhead chuckled.

Demyx stared at him. "Vacuum cleaner?"

Zexion shook his head at him as if to say "It's probably better not to ask."

"Well, what about your parents? What are we gonna tell them?"

"I'll tell them we're meeting up with these two at the library to study," He motioned to Zexion and Demyx, who were holding a pantomimed conversation that mostly consisted of furious headshaking from Zexion and a myriad of confused looks from Demyx. "Simple as that."

Roxas sighed in defeat. "Fine."

"Good," Axel grinned. "Wear something pretty."

~::~

"_This_ is your idea of a date?"

Axel and Roxas were at a park a few miles from the von Fusen's house. The early September air was comfortable, if not a tad bit on the chilly side. A large group of children were playing soccer in an open part of the area nearby, their excited cries echoing through the otherwise quiet park.

"We can go home, if you don't like it."

Roxas looked up at Axel, who jammed his fists in his pockets and turned his head away. "I didn't say I didn't like it. It's just… not what I expected you to pick."

"Thought I was gonna wine and dine you at some fancy place downtown?" the redhead chuckled, turning back to the blonde boy. "Nah, I'm too cheap for that. At least for a first date. We'll see what happens."

Roxas rolled his eyes. "I still can't believe you talked me into this at all."

A hand tickled the underside of his chin. "My powers of persuasion are good, in case you haven't noticed."

The blonde boy shivered and pushed Axel's arm away. "None of that. What did I tell you?"

"No changing the pace and all that jazz, I know. I'll respect your wishes, O light of my life."

Roxas stopped mid-step and stared at him. "Your _what?_"

Axel turned around and scratched the back of his head. "Oops, sorry. Ignore that. My brain just went out of commission for a second."

Roxas rolled his eyes and they continued walking until they reached a bench. The two boys flopped down onto it, nursing their tired feet. Their P.E. teacher, Coach Stone, had made them run earlier that day, and they never fully recovered. Roxas somehow ended up horizontal, with his legs lying on Axel's lap and his head on the armrest. Axel grinned but didn't say whatever he was thinking. Roxas was too weary to bother asking.

"So… Maybe this wasn't the best idea," Axel admitted, rubbing little circles into Roxas's ankle with his finger. "My feet are killing me."

Roxas bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. Whatever Axel was doing to his ankle tickled like hell. He squirmed as Axel continued to draw tiny circles on his skin, his fingernail leaving a slight imprint.

"What's with the face?"

Roxas took a deep breath. "Ankle… Finger… Tickles…"

Axel jerked his hand back like Roxas's leg was on fire. "Sorry, I didn't know."

The blonde boy sighed in relief. "It's cool."

"Mommy, I'm tired!" The two boys looked up to see a pregnant woman walking towards them on the path, a young boy clinging to the hem of her dress. "Can we sit down on that bench?"

The woman looked down, her short black bangs hanging in her eyes. "There are people there already, sweetie."

"Hey Roxas, sit up," Axel hissed. The blonde boy obeyed automatically, scooting closer to the redhead. In a louder voice, Axel called to her, "There's room if you want to sit, ma'am."

She looked relieved as she sat down and pulled her son up next to her. "Oh, thank you. It's nice to be able to sit down every once in a while, carrying as much extra weight as I am right now."

The little boy between her and Roxas gently placed a hand on her bulging stomach. "It's not weight, Mommy, it's my little brother!"

"It could be a sister, though," The boy wrinkled his nose in disgust, and the woman laughed.

After a few moments, Axel stood, pulling Roxas up with him. The woman looked surprised. "You don't have to leave. We'll only be here for a minute or two."

Axel smiled at her. "Don't worry, we're not leaving because of you. We have to go get dinner."

As the two boys turned to go, the woman's son tugged on Axel's jeans. The redhead looked down at him. "Yes?"

The boy held out a pudgy hand. "This is for you, for being nice to my mommy!"

Axel knelt down beside him and took the item in his palm, a small Hot Wheels car with a flame decal on it. "Thank you. Make sure that you take good care of that baby when it's born, even if it is a little sister, okay?" The boy nodded eagerly, and Axel ruffled his hair before standing up again and waving.

When they were out of earshot, Roxas turned to Axel and asked, "Did you know them?"

"Never seen them in my life. But I don't see any reason to be rude to somebody just because you don't know them. If you're nice to someone, maybe they'll turn around and be kind to someone else, and it'll keep going on down the line."

Roxas stared at him in disbelief. _When I met him three months ago, I never would have thought that he would do something like that. Even his mother said he could stand to learn some manners… It's amazing how much people can change in such a short time. Maybe this is why I love him. He's just so…_

"Perfect," Roxas murmured.

"What was that?"

The blonde boy blushed. "N-nothing. Um… where are we gonna eat, if we're actually getting dinner?"

"I have a place in mind," the redhead replied.

"Gee, that tells me a lot."

"All sarcasm and no gratitude leave Roxas a hungry boy."

Taking the hint, Roxas followed him in silence until they came to a small outdoor bistro on the outskirts of the park. The smell of fresh bread alone made his mouth water.

"Order anything you want," Axel told him as they sat down at a table under the shade of a black-and-white-striped umbrella. Roxas nodded and began inspecting the menu.

"Hello. May I take your order?" Roxas looked up to see none other than Aerith standing there, dressed in a spotless white apron and holding a pen and notepad. Her eyes widened in surprise. "Axel, Roxas! Hey! Never expected to see you here."

"When did you start working here?" Axel asked, grinning. "I never took you to be the waitress-y type."

Aerith laughed. "Believe it or not, my uncle Sephiroth owns this place. I needed some extra money, so he let me come and work here part time."

"Huh. That's pretty cool. Well, I'd like the club sandwich on whole wheat with a glass of water, please."

Aerith turned to Roxas. "And you?"

"I'd like the… homemade waffles, with, um… water, too, I guess. Please."

"Alright. Your food should be out in just a few minutes." Aerith grinned and took their menus with her when she returned to the kitchen.

"I'm really surprised her uncle's the one who runs this place," Axel mused. "Sephiroth's not exactly all cute, fuzzy animals and rainbows and shit."

Roxas stared at him. "Say what?"

"He's really intimidating. Has something to do with the fact that's he like, six-foot-seven and has an even scarier scowl than you do," Roxas's stare turned into a glare. "Hey, don't look at me like that."

Aerith returned a few minutes later with their food. She stopped to chat with Axel for a little while longer, and then went about her duties as a waitress again.

Axel stared at Roxas's plate, one eyebrow raised. "You're eating waffles for dinner?"

"Waffles are the food of the gods."

Roxas poured the cup of syrup that had been brought along with the waffles over them and began meticulously cutting them up into relatively equal pieces.

Axel rolled his eyes and smiled as he took a bite out of his sandwich. "You're so weird."

Roxas looked up from devouring his food. "That's why you love me."

"Hmm. Maybe. But don't get too weird…"

"And why not? I'm sure you're not any worse than I am. And don't tell me you'll leave me here or something. I won't believe you."

Axel suddenly burst out into song. "Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down, never gonna run around and desert you!"

"Axel!" Roxas hissed. "People are staring!"

"Never gonna make you cry, never gonna say goodbye, never gonna tell a lie and hurt you!" Axel sang. "Okay. I'm finished."

A group of teenagers who were leaving gave Axel high-fives as they exited the bistro.

"Axel, what the _hell_ was that about?"

"Wild thing, you make my heart sing," Axel replied, singing again.

"Shut up!" Roxas's face was crimson. "I swear, I'll leave! I love you, but geez, you're so annoying sometimes!"

Axel only grinned and continued to sing to him. "Why do you build me up? Buttercup, baby, just to let me down and mess me around?"

"That's it, I'm leaving," Roxas made as if to stand, but Axel put a hand on his knee under the table.

"I only sing because I love you!"

Roxas sighed and relaxed in his chair. "You're lucky we're in a public place right now, or I think I might seriously kill you."

Axel smirked. "Nah. You love me too much."

The blonde sighed, all his anger and embarrassment melting away. "Fair enough."

That night, Roxas dreamed of buttercups that smelled of fresh mint and cigarette smoke.


	9. Chapter Nine: Secrets

**Author's Note:** Short chapter is short. I apologize for that... However, I'm pretty sure the next chapter will make up for what this one is lacking in length and possibly content. Also, I'm not totally sure, but as the story arc stands at the moment, I'm looking at writing five, six, maybe seven more chapters, depending on how well the characters cooperate. I hope you'll all sick with me until the end, whenever that may be!

~::~

"Roxas, how could you do this to me? You're terrible! Why do you hate me? I'll… I'll _kill_ you if you choose that red-haired douchebag over me!"

Roxas sat bolt upright it his bed, slamming his head into the ceiling with a resounding _crack_. His chest heaved as he stared into the darkness. The image of Namine lunging at him, perfect white teeth transformed into fangs and fingernails elongated into claws, was burned into his mind. _Holy shit. It wasn't real. It wasn't real. I'm okay. Breathe, just breathe. It'll be okay._ The blonde boy lay back down and tried to fall back asleep, but his overworked mind wouldn't allow him to return to the realm of dreams. He simply continued staring into the blackness, unsure if his eyes were closed or not.

The frame of the bunk beds shook. _Shit. I must've made Axel wake up._ Roxas curled in on himself, trying to feign sleep.

"Roxas? You awake?" The blonde boy didn't respond to Axel's whispered inquiry. The redhead climbed onto Roxas's bed anyways, stretching out beside the other boy. Roxas could feel the heat radiating from him through his sheets. "I wish you were awake. I like talking with you, even if you are a little sleepy…"

Roxas was unsure what to do. He had two options: inform Axel that he was, in fact, awake, or continue to ignore him and try to actually go to sleep. However, the blonde's tired mind chose option number three. He stretched and rolled over, laying his head on Axel's chest and throwing an arm over the other boy's stomach. A sharp intake of breath told Roxas that Axel had not been expecting this reaction. The blonde boy smiled to himself in the darkness. _I'm gonna keep him on his toes, that's for sure._

Axel's hand found its way to Roxas's head, and the redhead began stroking his hair. "I sure hope you don't ever hear me when I talk like this. I bet I sound so stupid, talking to somebody that's asleep," He absentmindedly played with a few strands of blonde hair that became entangled in his fingers. "I'd hate for you to make fun of me because of it."

Roxas wanted to tell him that he wouldn't make fun of him, but thought better of it. _He'd probably still get embarrassed enough to go back to his own bed. I like having him here. He's… warm…_ The blonde could barely continue his train of thought. _Hard to believe it's been… just a week and a half… since we both realized…_ His cluttered thoughts drifted into the endless black void as sleep reclaimed him.

For the first time since he arrived at the von Fusen house, Roxas woke up before Axel. He blinked in the early morning sun filtering in through the windows, not daring to move lest he wake the redhead. The first thing he realized was that Axel's pajama shirt smelled strongly of mint. The second thing he realized was that the phoenix plush he made for Axel was wrapped in the arm that wasn't trapped underneath him.

Roxas bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. _Where's a camera? Demyx said I should take pictures if he ever slept with that thing…_

The blonde boy's gaze shifted to Axel's face, serene in sleep. He almost looked… carefree, the way a half-smile curved his lips. Roxas wished Axel could always be like that, happy and free from life's troubles.

The green eyes blinked open. "Hi."

Roxas smiled. "Hi yourself."

"How long have you been awake?" Axel asked, yawning.

"Only a few minutes," the blonde replied. "Please tell me it's Saturday."

Axel chuckled, his chest trembling under Roxas's head like a small earthquake. "It's Saturday. Why do you ask?"

Roxas snuggled closer to him. "Because you're warm, and I don't wanna get out of bed."

Axel planted a kiss on his forehead and smiled. "Well, then, I guess I'm stuck here. However, I heard a rumor that Mom might be making waffles for breakfast this morning, so-…" Before he could finish, Roxas was down the ladder and scrambling to change into his clothes. The redhead stared at him for a moment before laughing and following him down.

"Demyx called for you about twenty minutes ago," Mrs. von Fusen told Axel as he and Roxas, now clothed, walked into the kitchen. She had her back to them, hunching over the counter and inspecting a piece of cooking equipment that was partially blocked by her body.

"What time is it?" The redhead shook his head as he glanced at the clock. "I'd expect him to be asleep this early on a Saturday."

"He said something about guitar lessons. He wanted to know if he could come over and 'instruct you in the fine art of playing a musical instrument.'"

Axel laughed as he poured Roxas and himself glasses of milk. "That sounds just like him. I'll call him back after breakfast. You _did_ make waffles, right?"

His mother turned around holding two plates piled with fresh waffles. "You bet I did. I hope I didn't make too many."

Roxas felt like he died and went to heaven. He drowned his stack of waffles in syrup and began eating ravenously. "Thish ish vurry gut," he said through a mouthful of food. "Phank you!" Axel and his mother both burst out laughing at the comical figure Roxas cut, stuffing waffles into his mouth and making faces of utter delight that didn't look entirely innocent. The blonde boy looked up at them in confusion. He swallowed and asked, "What's so funny?"

The two of them just shook their heads and bit back any remaining laughter. Axel continued eating his breakfast, and Roxas waited for him so they could head back upstairs together. The redhead picked up his phone and punched in Demyx's number.

"Demyx? Hey. Yeah, Mom told me. Yeah. Uh-huh," Axel was silent for a few moments. "…okay then. Yeah. See you soon. Bye."

Roxas glanced over his shoulder at him as he knelt down by Sal, absentmindedly petting him. "So what's the deal?"

"Demyx is coming over in thirty minutes to give me a guitar lesson. Says there's one song I have to sing, though."

Roxas left Sal to go back to sleep and walked over. "And that is?"

"I have no idea," Axel shrugged. "He wouldn't tell me."

Demyx arrived approximately thirty minutes later with a black guitar case and a huge smile on his face. Without waiting for Roxas, he marched straight up to Axel's room and began immediately giving out orders. "Axel, let me tune your guitar while I get mine ready. Um… Roxas? Can you leave for a little while?"

The blonde boy stared at him in confusion. "Why?"

"Because I said so, that's why."

Roxas stood in the doorway, too stubborn and curious to leave. Axel walked over to him and leaned down so they were on eye level. "Just trust Demyx. Whatever he's got planned is gonna be good. You don't have to stay away for long. Just for a little while." Axel kissed him and Roxas muttered under his breath as he descended the stairs, red as a beet.

The blonde boy walked to the living room and flopped down on the couch, turning on the TV. He didn't really pay attention to whatever was on. His mind raced with all of the possible reasons Demyx had wanted him to leave. _Maybe he's helping Axel write a love song for me... Nah. Maybe it's a late birthday present? That could be it._

Before he knew it, fifteen minutes had passed, and Axel appeared in the doorway. "My lord Demyx has decreed that you may return, sir." The redhead bowed to Roxas. "Please allow me escort you to the room."

"You're weird."

Axel grinned, falling back into his usual relaxed manner. "Don't I know it."

The two of them headed back upstairs to find Demyx sitting cross-legged in the middle of the floor holding a guitar in his lap. "Hey, guys. Back so soon? I half expected you to make a detour to make up for the time you lost spent in each other's company."

"You're starting to sound like Zexion, man," Axel shook his head. "You've been spending too much time with him."

"I do _not_ sound like Zexion," Demyx scowled at him. "Nor do I spend too much time with him. It's not my fault we live two streets away from each other."

"Whatever," Axel waved a hand in dismissal. "Shall we get on with this?"

Demyx nodded and began plucking away at the strings of his guitar, getting into the rhythm. Axel retrieved his own guitar from his bed and sat down next to him, beckoning Roxas over as he did.

"Are you playing a duet?"

Axel nodded and he and Demyx began playing. It wasn't a song Roxas recognized, but it was quiet and soothing. When Axel began singing, Roxas became totally ensnared in the music. Whether or not he knew the song, Roxas got the message behind the words and the guitar playing quietly alongside Axel's voice.

"You guys are amazing," Roxas breathed as the last few notes faded into silence.

Demyx and Axel glanced at each other and grinned. "We know."

The blonde boy rolled his eyes and leaned back on his arms, palms flat on the floor. "So now what? Got any more songs for me?"

Demyx sniffed disdainfully. "Consider yourself lucky that you got _one_. Axel's a total coward. I had to spend all that time you were downstairs boosting his confidence."

Roxas glanced at Axel, who had turned red. "Really? You, a coward?"

The redhead set his guitar on the floor and bunched his knees up to his chest, hiding his face behind them. "Yes. A huge coward. You have no idea."

"Well, coward or not, I probably need to get home," Demyx said, strumming a few random strings on his guitar. He pulled a face at the dissonance and set it down. "Mom said she's taking me shopping today."

"So soon?" Axel sighed. "Well, if your mother's making you go shopping, you'd better obey her. She's scary when she's mad."

"Okay. I'll see you guys later, then," Demyx picked up his guitar and placed it in the case he had brought with him. Axel and Roxas followed him down to the front door. Demyx stepped outside, but then turned back. "Oh, hey, did you hear about the field trip the seniors are taking at the end of the month?"

Roxas and Axel stared at him. "What field trip?"

~::~

The field trip, as it turned out, was a chance for any of the seniors who needed community service hours to gain a few extra. Roxas, dragging his feet all the way to the bathroom the morning of, muttered curses at whoever's bright idea it had been to make a group of lazy teenagers wake up at five in the morning to get to school two hours early for _community service_, of all things.

"Don't sound so excited," Axel commented as he rummaged through one of the dresser drawers. "You'll explode from sheer happiness."

Roxas flipped him off and shut the bathroom door behind him with a bang. _I am not a morning person. This is ridiculous. I don't wanna go on this stupid field trip, but Axel's making me…_Resigned to the fact that the redhead was even more stubborn than he was and there was no way he was getting out of this, the blonde boy changed and styled his hair into its usual gravity-defying spikes. Upon exiting the bathroom, Roxas found Axel sitting on his bed, apparently all ready to go.

"You're sure in a hurry."

Axel looked up from the journal he was writing in. "I'm just… happy to get a day out of school."

Roxas cocked an eyebrow. "Is that all?"

The redhead sighed and a small smile appeared on his lips. "You got me. I checked where we're going, and it turns out it's an animal shelter that also doubles as a veterinary clinic on the other side of town. I've volunteered there before, and I know one of the guys who runs it pretty well."

"You volunteered at an animal shelter?"

The small smile turned into a grin. "This is _me_ we're talking about. How else would I have dealt with Sal when we first got him?" The black cat wandered over at the mention of his name and rubbed up against Axel's legs, purring. The redhead scratched behind his ears. "I love animals. They're so much easier to deal with than humans, and they never let you down."

Roxas snorted. "Nice to know you think so highly of humans like me."

Axel stood and walked towards him until Roxas could feel his breath on his forehead. The blonde boy looked up at him, unperturbed by their proximity for once. "If you don't mind me comparing you to an animal, then you're more like them than most people are."

Roxas allowed the hint of a smile to curl the corners of his lips. "What kind of animal would I be?"

Axel thought for a moment before leaning down and kissing him. When he pulled away, he said with a smile, "You'd be a horse. Probably only a foal right now, though."

"A horse?" Roxas stared at him as the redhead walked back to his bed. "Why a horse?"

"You're loyal and strong-willed, but you've got a gentle side hiding underneath that little façade you have," Axel said without looking at him.

"Then what would you be?" Roxas was startled by how accurate Axel's description sounded.

"Me?" Axel turned to face him for a moment. "I'd be a hawk."

"Oh, sure, you get all the cool feathers and talons and shit, and I'm a pack animal. I feel loved," Roxas scoffed as he gathered his belongings and stuffed them into his backpack.

"But horses are noble creatures. I don't think you should complain about being so useful to others, and so well-liked. As for me…" Axel paused. "Well, we hawks don't get much love. Consider yourself lucky."

Roxas wasn't sure if he was supposed to read something into that or not, but before he could even begin to think about it, Axel pulled him downstairs to the kitchen, bag left forgotten on his bed, without any explanation as to what he was doing.

"Waffles," Axel answered simply when Roxas gave him a questioning look from his seat at the kitchen table. Axel pulled a plate wrapped in tin foil out of the fridge and took of the foil to reveal a whole stack of homemade waffles on it. The blonde boy's mouth watered at the sight of them as Axel put them in the microwave to heat them up.

Twenty minutes later, every single waffle was gone and Axel and Roxas were heading out the door, backpacks in hand. Since the buses weren't running yet, the two boys took Mrs. von Fusen's car to get to school.

"Why don't you let me drive?" Roxas complained, slumping down in his seat.

Axel kept his eyes on the road, but the smirk of his face was apparent. "Because I don't want you to crash my mom's car."

The blonde boy glared at him. "Your confidence in me is overwhelming."

"I'd kiss you right now if I could to make up for that, but since I can't, you'll have to forgive me without it," Axel allowed himself a glance at Roxas to see the other's boys reaction. "Uh-oh, it's the perma-scowl again."

"Oh, shut up."

They arrived at Traverse High a few minutes earlier than expected thanks to sparse traffic on the roads. Axel and Roxas grabbed their bags and walked inside the front lobby and down the halls to the cafeteria, where the students were congregating. They immediately spotted Zexion and Demyx, who were seated a few tables away.

"Good morning," Axel said cheerfully as he plopped down in the empty seat next to Demyx.

Zexion lifted his head from the table and glared at him. "Good morning my ass. It's too early to be at school. Now, shut up. I'm trying to sleep."

Roxas was taken aback at how different this Zexion was from a well-rested one. Axel noticed his surprised expression and rolled his eyes. Demyx smothered giggles as the redhead began copying Zexion, laying his head on the table and pretending to be asleep.

"Axel," The boy in question looked up. Zexion's glare transformed into an all-out leer. "Do you really want me to kill you?"

The redhead sat up and held his hands up defensively. "Hey, I'm tired too. Don't take it out on me."

Before they knew it, the group of seniors was being herded onto school buses by the teachers, who looked just as tired as they did. Axel and Roxas took a seat behind the one Zexion and Demyx shared. Zexion promptly fell asleep, and the other three boys held a whispered conversation debating whether or not it was worth it to stick something in his ear and see what happened. They decided that they would rather keep their lives than have a moment or two of amusement, and lapsed into silence.

Axel pulled out his journal and began scribbling things down in it. Every time Roxas tried to sneak a peek over Axel's arm, the redhead shut it and held it out of his reach. "Quit being so nosy. I'm not writing about you."

"I'm not-… Okay, yeah I am. Will you ever show me what's in there?"

"Someday, maybe. We'll see."

The bus ride to the animal shelter took longer than Roxas thought it would. He caught himself almost falling asleep on Axel's shoulder several times. They talked a little, but none of it was particularly interesting. It was hard to really talk with a bus full of nosy seniors sitting around you.

~::~

The late November air was crisp, the chilly breeze blowing straight through Roxas's thin jacket. He shivered as he stepped off the bus and hurried inside the large, clean white building that bore a sign reading "Kingston Veterinary Clinic and Animal Shelter."

The blonde boy only half listened as the teachers explained what they would be doing. He knew Axel would tell it to him again just to make sure he got it. Besides, the redhead had been there before. He knew what was going on.

"Come on, time to get to work," Axel grabbed Roxas's arm as the crowd dispersed and dragged him off down one of the hallways after a small group of students. They turned into a long room filled from floor to ceiling on all the walls with cages containing every size, shape, and color of dogs and cats imaginable.

A man with long blue hair was kneeling by one of the cages holding a small Scottish terrier in his arms and speaking soothingly to it. He looked up when the apprehensive group of students entered and returned the dog to its cage. "You're with me, then?" A few of them nodded. "Alright. I'll give you your jobs individually."

While Axel and Roxas waited to be assigned, the redhead stared intently at the blue-haired man, as if trying to remember something. Suddenly he snapped his fingers. "Saix! That's it!"

Roxas jumped. "What?"

"He's the guy I told you about, the one I know. His name is Saix," Axel explained. "He and his… partner, Xemnas, run this place."

Saix walked over to them at this point. When he saw Axel, a faint smile flitted across his face. "Axel. It's been a long time."

The redhead scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. I'm sorry. I've been busy. Got a new roommate. Saix, this is Roxas."

Roxas smiled nervously up into Saix's piercing yellow eyes. "It's nice to meet you."

He held out a hand. "Likewise. And don't worry. I don't bite any more than the animals here."

Roxas glanced at Axel. "Is he joking?"

The other boy smirked. "Maybe."

Despite this, Roxas shook Saix's hand. The blue-haired man's hand was callused from years of work. "Roxas, would you go check up on all of the animals whose cages have red tags on them? They're our permanent residents, and they need a little extra care."

The blonde boy nodded obediently and walked off to do his job, staying just within earshot of Axel and Saix, who began talking in quiet tones.

"Roommate? Surely you haven't moved out already," Saix said, crossing his arms.

Axel shoved his hands in his pockets. "Nah, I'm still at home. The kid lost his parents in a bad car accident a few months back, and my parents took him in because they were good friends of his family… Apparently the only family he's got is a grandmother in France and an aunt and uncle somewhere on the east coast. They didn't want him to have to move that far from the place he lived all his life."

The blue-haired man grunted in acknowledgement. "I see. But are you two… I saw the way he looked at you. You're no ordinary roommates, by my reckoning. How long has he been with your family?"

"We…" Axel paused, as if trying to find the right words. "He's been with us for four months, maybe? Since the beginning of the school year, almost. His birthday was the end of last month, and I… I'm just an idiot, and I've been through a lot of shit with Larxene lately, and Namine's getting to him…"

Saix's voice silenced his babbling. "What happened?"

"I told him I loved him," Axel's words were barely audible. "I'm an idiot."

"And what did he say?"

"He said he loved me too, but then he started doubting it the next morning… Don't look at me like that, we did _not_ do anything."

Saix was silent for a moment. "Hmm. I'm afraid I can't be of much help to you. Xemnas and I haven't had trouble of this kind for a while, thank goodness. You'll figure it out."

"I guess so…"

"Roxas," The blonde boy's hair stood on end as he whipped around to see Saix staring at him. "Don't forget to write anything notable down on the clipboards by the cages. Alright?" Roxas nodded, breathing a quiet sigh of relief.

Axel walked over to join him, obviously deep in thought judging by the way his forehead scrunched together. Roxas had noticed this last week when they played an ill-fated Scrabble game against Zexion and Demyx. Those little lines always appeared when he was thinking up his next move.

"Something on your mind?" Roxas asked him as they walked to the next cage.

"You, how cold my ankles are, what we're having for lunch, you, how cute that kitten over there is, and did I mention you?"

Roxas blushed to the tips of his ears. "Yes. Three times, at least."

Axel laughed and wrote something on one of the clipboards in neat handwriting. "That poor little beagle needs something to help it sleep. Its eyes look tired."

Roxas looked at the dog in question, and then glanced at Axel. "You can tell that just by looking?"

The redhead nodded. "Yeah. I've always had a way with animals. Ever since I was little, I've dreamed about becoming a veterinarian. I think it would be a good job to have, since I'm not so good with people."

"I can see you doing that. I know I'd never be able to stomach some of the things vets have to do… Biology was never my favorite subject."

Axel glanced at him. "What, are you scared of blood or something?"

Roxas squeezed his eyes shut. "Yes. Very, very afraid. Remember when you got that bad paper cut?"

"Yeah. You freaked out for about five minutes because it turned red," Axel sighed and patted his shoulder. "Don't worry. Plenty of people were never meant to be doctors."

The blonde boy nodded. "You're right. It's funny, though. Both of my parents were doctors. I always thought I'd grow up and be just like them, but I guess the only things were really inherit from our parents is how we look and some of our personality, not what we're afraid of."

Axel began searching the air around him, earning a questioning look from Roxas. The redhead stopped and said innocently, "I was looking for _your_ clipboard. You need something to help you sleep, too."

"…why?"

"You just said something philosophical," Axel laid a hand on his forehead. "Do you have a fever? How many fingers am I holding up?"

Roxas laughed and pushed his hands away. "I'm fine, you idiot. Just because I made an intelligent observation does not mean the world's going to end."

The other boy grinned. "I guess not. At least, not immediately."

The blonde rolled his eyes and continued checking the animals in the red tagged cages. Axel always noticed little things that he couldn't see, and it was beginning to frustrate him. _Is there anything he can't do? I don't think it's fair that he's so perfect. Share a little with the rest of us._

"Yo, Earth to Roxas," He looked up at Axel. "That was the last cage. We should go see if Saix has anything else for us to do." Roxas nodded and followed him over to where the blue-haired man was seated at a desk tucked away in the corner of the room.

"Hey, Saix," Axel said. "We're done. Got anything else you need?"

Without looking up from the paperwork he was doing, Saix said, "Would you please check the foods bowls of the animals on the right side of the room? There are instructions for what food to give them on the clipboards."

Axel saluted. "Will do, sir." The redhead pulled Roxas after him to get started.

"Hey, Axel, can I ask you something?"

"I'm pretty sure you just did."

Roxas rolled his eyes. "How did you meet Saix? You two seem awfully buddy-buddy."

Axel froze halfway through picking up a bag of dog food. It slid out of his hands and hit the floor with a loud thump. "We… A couple years ago, just a few months after I moved here… he and I… we… My parents knew his family. Before he met Xemnas… I hope you know what I'm implying. I don't feel like explaining it in such a public place."

The blonde boy sighed, understanding what Axel was avoiding. "Tell me when we get back home."

The redhead looked like he was about to protest, but instead, he sighed in defeat and stayed silent as they did the job assigned to them by Saix. It was awkward every time their hands brushed or one of them stood up from peering into a cage lower down only to find the other's face inches from their own. Roxas knew that he was beet red, but there was little he could do about it except keep his eyes on the floor and hope no one noticed.

The group of seniors gathered for lunch around noon, and then split back up to return to their jobs. Demyx and Zexion kept giving Axel and Roxas, who were silent, worried looks, but they didn't dare ask what was going on.

_How many secrets does he have?_ Roxas was glad of the time he had to think through these new developments. _He never mentioned Saix before, he's only told me part of Reno's story, and I still don't know why he and Namine hate each other so much. Is he really that much of a coward? Too scared to tell me anything because he thinks it'll make me hate him?_

When two-thirty rolled around, the teachers collected the signed community service forms from Saix and ushered the students back onto the buses. Still Axel and Roxas remained silent as they rode back to school.

"…hey, are you guys okay?" Demyx finally breeched the subject. "You're awfully quiet."

Axel stared out the window as he answered absentmindedly, "We're fine. Don't worry."

Demyx did not seem convinced, but he turned back around and left them alone nonetheless.

When they arrived home, Axel and Roxas called a greeting to Mrs. von Fusen, who was sitting in the living room, and then headed upstairs.

Roxas shut the door as he entered and then turned to face Axel, crossing his arms over his chest. "Alright. Explain yourself."

Axel sat down on his bed and kicked his shoes off. "When we moved here three years ago, Saix was the first friend I made because my dad works with Saix's dad. They made us hang out together. I hadn't met Larxene or Demyx or Zexion yet because it was the middle of summer and none of them live close to me. Saix and I were bored, and I was stupid. He's only four years older than me, you see, and… Well, we were together for a while behind our parents' backs."

Roxas walked over to sit next to him. "Together as in boyfriends or together as in…?"

Axel sighed. "We experimented. Like I said, I was younger and even more stupid, and I think he had a thing for redheads back then. Now he's got Xemnas, and we're still friends because there were never really any emotional ties. We were just fulfilling our… bodily desires."

The blonde boy stared down at the battered pair of Converse he was wearing. "For how long?"

"About six, maybe seven months. But by the end of that, I was already falling for Larxene, and Saix met Xemnas shortly after, so we agreed that we should be friends and nothing more."

Roxas remained silent for few minutes. Then, he asked, "Any other secrets I need to know about?"

Axel stood and walked over to the windows. He sighed and jammed his fists in his pockets. "None you need to know right now."

"I still think you don't trust me."

Axel half-turned to look at him. "I'm getting there."

_Liar_.


	10. Chapter Ten: Disaster

**Author's Note:** Writing this chapter made me feel both very accomplished and very naughty. It's hard enough to write normal fanfiction when you're stuck in a small hotel room with your family, but even worse when it's not family-friendly subject matter. Well, on that note, I hope you enjoy!

~::~

The end of the school semester went out, not with a bang, but a hard freeze. Early December passed in thick flurries of snow followed by sleet and hail for a solid week. By the last day of school, everyone in the city was so tired of white many of them almost swore to never wear it again.

Deprived of any company other than each other and Axel's parents, Roxas and the redhead holed themselves up on Axel's bed and talked the hours away, interspersed with raiding the kitchen for food and watching whatever movies they could pilfer from the computer room. The prolonged contact with Axel was doing funny things to Roxas's head, but either the redhead didn't notice, or the blonde boy was getting better at hiding his feelings.

"We've been snowed in for what, three days now? You've gotta wonder when our food's gonna run out."

Roxas glanced up at Axel, one eyebrow raised. "Well, aren't you the picture of optimism?"

The redhead grinned, something he'd done almost constantly since the blizzard hit. "I'm just being realistic. With us two eating as much as we do, we can't have much."

"But you forgot that your mother went to the grocery store the day before we got stuck in here," Roxas replied, grinning back.

"Oh. Right. I knew that."

"Sure you did. You know ev-…" A kiss from Axel silenced him in a heartbeat. Roxas blushed. "Nice diversion."

"It's a tried and true method," Axel replied, adjusting the thick woolen blanket draped over the two of them. "And you're adorable when you blush. I could just eat you up." The redhead tapped the tip of Roxas's nose.

"Eat me up? Really? What are you, my grandmother or something?" Roxas wrinkled his nose and tried to bite Axel's finger.

"No," the redhead replied. "Uh-uh, bad boy. No biting me."

"That's not what you said last night," Roxas clapped a hand over his mouth in surprise. _Oh, shit. Did I really just say that?_

Axel cocked an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"M'sorry," Roxas looked down, embarrassed. "I didn't mean to say that."

Axel's expression of incredulity melted into a knowing smile. "I understand. You don't have to hide your little fantasies from me. No one else will ever find out."

"Okay, I'm leaving. How do I get out of this blanket?" The blonde boy began searching for an escape from the tightly wrapped fabric.

"You're not getting away that easy!" Axel growled playfully and pounced on Roxas. The blonde giggled when the redhead began rubbing circles on one of his exposed ankles. The blonde squirmed, trying to escape his hands.

"No, no, no, quit it, please!" The giggles exploded into full-blown laughter. The two boys went down in a tangle of flailing limbs and blanket. "Axel, Axel, what are you doing… Stop!"

All noise stopped abruptly when Roxas ended up pinned to the bed, Axel's face just inches from his. Both of them were breathing heavily. The blonde boy's eyes widened as Axel leaned down and kissed him, his tongue licking hungrily over his bottom lip. Roxas opened his mouth in a gasp and the redhead's tongue slid inside his mouth, tracing the roof of his mouth. The redhead pulled back faster than lightning and slid off the bed, stumbling to the bathroom. Roxas sat up, still in shock, and tried to will away the growing lump in the front of his pants.

Axel remerged from the bathroom after a few minutes. Roxas was still seated on the redhead's bed, knees bunched up to his chest. Axel sat down beside him and sighed. "Rox, I'm sorry. That was uncalled for."

The blonde boy didn't look at him. "It's okay. We just gotta be more careful. Your parents don't need to get suspicious."

Axel laughed, a harsh, mirthless sound that grated against Roxas's taxed nerves. "You don't have to tell me. I hope to hell they didn't hear that little incident."

The blonde boy sighed. He didn't have the heart nor the brainpower to respond. _What the hell just happened? We've kissed a hundred times before this. What changed? I'm not complaining, but…_

"That was weird," Axel managed to finish his thought for him. When the blonde didn't respond, Axel continued. "Why are your ankles so ticklish? I don't know anyone who's like that."

Roxas breathed a small sigh of relief. _Oh, thank God. He wasn't thinking what I was._ "I dunno. They just are. The back of your neck is ticklish, isn't it?"

"No, it is n-…" Axel broke off into laughter when Roxas ran his fingers across the nape of his neck. "Hey, don't start that again. I don't think I can take much more tension."

"Tension?"

"Yeah, y'know, of the sexual kind," Roxas rolled his eyes and tried to push the redhead off the bed. "Hey, I told you I can't lie. Be careful what you ask me, because ninety percent of the time, you'll get an honest answer."

"You're horrible," the blonde boy said.

Axel smirked. "To quote you from earlier, 'That's not what you said last night.'"

Roxas groaned.

~::~

That night, Axel's parents informed them of an update to their plans for the next couple of weeks before Christmas: The four of them were going to visit Roxas's hometown for a few days. Roxas groaned inwardly, but tried to sound excited when Mrs. von Fusen asked him if that was all right with him. Axel shot him a worried glance, but refrained from saying anything.

"Sorry for dropping this on you two days before we leave," Mr. von Fusen said. "Also, the first couple of days there, we may go and see some of our old friends in a nearby town, so you can explore for a while. Roxas, you can introduce Axel to your friends and show him around town."

"It's cool, Dad," Axel said, face plastered with a grin that was all too fake. "I'm Roxas wouldn't mind acquainting me with his town."

"Not at all. You can finally try the sea-salt ice cream," the blonde replied.

Mrs. von Fusen smiled. "Great. You two can go back upstairs now. Dinner's in half an hour. Be good until then."

"Okay. We will," Axel and Roxas returned to their room. Roxas immediately climbed up to his bed and flopped down face-first into his pillow. The redhead followed and laid a hand on his back. "Are you sure it's okay for us to go to your old home? Will you be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Roxas lied through his teeth.

"Well… Okay. If you say so," Axel returned to his own bed, leaving Roxas to wallow in his ill-concealed misery.

_Things will be so much more awkward than last time_. Roxas sighed and rolled over onto his back so he could stare at the blank white ceiling. _I wonder what Hayner and the gang will say when they met Axel, since I've told them so little in the few phone calls we've shared the last couple of months._

At dinner that night, the von Fusens began talking over their plans in detail. Roxas barely listened to what they were saying, not engaged enough in the conversation or the subject to even bother. He remained in this lethargic daze most of the night, even during the usual talk he and Axel shared, although inside on the redhead's bed due to the snow. Axel just sat and held him in his lap, not saying a word. He knew better than to press the blonde boy for answers.

Before Roxas crawled into bed that night, Axel climbed up the ladder to hand him the phoenix plush, now nicknamed Moeru, the Japanese word for burn. Without a word he climbed back down to his bed after kissing Roxas on the forehead once.

Roxas rolled onto his side facing the wall and clutched the stuffed animal to his chest, holding on to the scraps of hope sewn into the fabric. He lay there in the darkness, waiting for sleep to come.

~::~

"Everybody got everything? Are you sure? Yes? Okay, let's go!"

Seven in the morning saw Roxas and the von Fusens piling into Mr. von Fusen's car along with a plethora of suitcases. The four of them were relatively subdued as they headed for the highway that would take them most of the way to Eden View.

About thirty minutes into their drive, they stopped to eat breakfast as a fast food restaurant. While Axel's parents ordered, the redhead and Roxas began passing notes via a pile of napkins and a purple crayon they found on the floor, drawing silly pictures and nonsense messages. When Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen returned, the two boys were doubled over with the force of the giggles they were smothering.

Once they were back on the road, Axel began writing in his journal again, much to Roxas's dismay. Still the redhead refused to let him see anything that was written inside it, only telling him that he would get to see it someday. It infuriated the blonde.

A few quiet hours passed, interspersed with a few detours to rest stops and a restaurant at lunch. About thirty minutes after they ate, they pulled into the parking lot of the hotel where they would be staying for the duration of their trip. Mr. von Fusen checked them in and then the group headed up to their room, a third floor suite with an excellent view of the town's skyline, complete with Sunset Hill and the train station's clock tower.

Axel walked over to the window immediately after they entered, dropping his backpack on the side of the bed nearest to it. "Man," he breathed. "I can see why the people here usually don't move away. This view is just… stunning."

Roxas walked over next to him, a faint smile on his lips. "At least, we don't move out by choice. Work or family circumstances may drive us away, but we always find our way back, somehow. As my grandmother always says, 'Once a denizen of Twilight Town, always a denizen of Twilight Town.'"

"It _is_ a beautiful place, though," Mrs. von Fusen commented as she fixed her make-up in the mirror. "Your parents could talk about it for hours on end, Roxas. I've never gotten to really explore, but that'll have to wait a little longer."

Axel turned around to look at her. "You're going to see your friends already? I thought you'd stay longer so you could get situated."

Mr. von Fusen shook his head. "They're expecting us very soon. It's only about forty minutes down the road. We'll call you when we get there."

"You can go ahead and look around while we're gone. I'll leave you a room key on the dresser over here," Axel's parents grabbed their bags again and began making their way back out into the hallway. "You two be good, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Axel and Roxas chorused. The door closed, and they were left staring at the blank white paint.

Axel turned to Roxas. "So… Now what?"

The blonde boy shrugged. "I dunno. You tell me."

Axel grabbed his cell phone out of his bag and gestured towards the door. "Shall we?"

"Why do I get the feeling I won't like whatever you're about to suggest?"

The taller boy stepped closer to him and leaned down so their faces were just an inch or two apart. Roxas could smell the mint gum he was chewing on his breath, masking the smell of the cigarette he smoked earlier that morning before they left. "You've just gotta trust me, okay? I would never do anything that would hurt you."

"Okay, fine," The blonde sighed in defeat. "Just don't do anything stupid."

Axel pressed a gentle kiss to his lips, pulling their bodies together. Roxas could feel both of their hearts pounding through his thick hoodie and idly wondered if Axel could too. The redhead withdrew and took him by the hand, leading him out the door, grabbing the key card on the way.

Ten minutes later saw the two boys sitting on the edge of the huge fountain in the center of town, nursing two cups of hot chocolate in their hands. The chilly mid-December air nipped at their exposed fingers and noses, turning them bright pink. Axel kept making comments about how cute he thought Roxas was, adding to the artificial blush with a real one.

"Hey, look out!" One of the children skating on the ice of the fountain barreled towards Roxas, unable to stop herself. The blonde boy froze, unsure what to do. Axel moved like lightning, managing to catch the little girl and slide over to the other side of Roxas without spilling a drop of his drink.

"Th-thank you, mister" the girl sniffed, wiping at her runny nose with a mitten-clad hand. She turned to Roxas when Axel let her go and looked down. "I'm s-sorry."

Roxas smiled at her after he got over the shock of seeing Axel leap in front of him like that. "Just be more careful, okay?" The little girl nodded and skated shakily back over to her group of friends. The blonde boy then glanced at Axel in awe. "How the _hell_ did you _do_ that?"

"What? Oh. I dunno. Good reflexes, I guess," Axel seemed distracted by something, staring off into the gathering dusk. His phone began ringing, and he handed his cup to Roxas so he could answer. "Hello? Hey, Mom. What's up? …really? You're sure? Well… okay, that's cool. No, it's fine. Okay. Yeah. We will. Bye."

Roxas cocked an eyebrow. "What was that about?"

"Mom and Dad are staying over at their friends' house tonight, apparently. We've got the hotel room to ourselves. She said we can also go get dinner whenever we feel like it, so long as we don't break the bank."

"She really thinks we'd eat that much after all that lunch?"

Axel laughed. "This is _us_ we're talking about. But I'm not really hungry yet. I guess we can go back and warm up in the room once we finish our hot chocolate."

A few minutes later saw the two of them back in the hotel room, shaking of the snow flurries that had started to fall as they made their way through the streets of town. Roxas shivered the whole way up on the elevator ride, and after Axel and he changed into his thick woolen pajamas, the redhead curled up next to him on the bed they would be sharing, a blanket covering them.

"Too bad the TV doesn't have a DVD player," Axel said. "I wouldn't mind watching some sappy Christmas movie right now."

"What, just because it's snowing? Aren't you tired of snow after that blizzard we got hit with back at your house?" Roxas rolled his eyes.

"Aw, come on, where's your Christmas spirit?"

"Oh, I was supposed to bring that? Sorry, I didn't have room in my suitcase," Sarcasm dripped off of Roxas's words.

Axel punched his shoulder playfully. "If you start saying 'Bah, humbug,' I'm going to disown you."

Roxas sighed and leaned into the redhead's embrace. "I won't. It's just… This will be my first Christmas without my parents. It's… kind of a hard concept to grasp. I still miss them a lot, you know."

Axel kissed his forehead. "I understand, I think. My first Christmas without Reno was tough, too. That little empty space in your heart where they were before hurts just a little more than usual. Don't be afraid to ask me if you need anything, okay? Never forget rule number three."

Roxas gave him a weak smile. "Okay. I won't forget, got it memorized?"

"Hey, that's my line!"

The two boys laughed and then lapsed back into silence for a while. The minutes ticked away as they sat there. Roxas felt himself beginning to fall asleep, but he fought to stay awake. He liked the feeling of Axel breathing beneath him, chest rising and falling rhythmically. It made him feel safe and secure in a place where he wasn't sure how much he really belonged anymore, despite his grandmother's assurances that once you lived there, you always had a place.

"Hey, I'm hungry now," Roxas sat up, rubbing his eyes. He glanced at the clock to see that it was almost six. Axel yawned and stretched. _Was he asleep?_ "What do you suggest we get?"

"Well, there's a really good little pizza place downtown, if you don't mind waiting a little while longer. I can go pick it up, if you'd like."

Axel ruffled his hair and slid off the bed. "Nah, give me directions and I'll go get it. Your hands are still cold. I think you could use a good, hot shower."

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mommy dearest."

"Do I have to tell Demyx on you, young man?" Axel waggled a finger at him as he stuffed his feet into his shoes.

The blonde boy chuckled and scribbled down the directions to the pizzeria on the pad of paper on the dresser. "No, sir. Here, these are the directions. Be careful, okay?"

Axel walked past him, planting a kiss on the top of his head as he went. "I will. Be good."

Roxas nodded and walked into the bathroom to undress. He didn't bother shutting the door behind him because he knew it would take at least thirty minutes for Axel to find the restaurant, have the pizza made, and get back, if not more. The blonde boy stepped into the shower and twisted the knob to turn on the water. He felt some of his fatigue and the lingering cold from the winter air wash away as the hot water rained down on his back.

_I sure hope Axel doesn't get his ass lost out in the snow. I would hate to have to go out and find him._ Roxas shook his head, sending water droplets cascading onto the shower walls._ Why am I worrying about him so much? If he can save me from a runaway ice-skater, he can find a silly little pizzeria._

After he had scrubbed himself down and thoroughly washed his hair, Roxas turned off the water and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around his waist as he stepped out onto the bathroom mat. He drew a silly face in the condensation-covered mirror and proceeded to dry himself off. He pulled on his underwear and pajama pants, but left his shirt lying on the floor in the bathroom.

On his way out of the bathroom, he glanced at the clock. It had been well over the thirty minutes Roxas estimated it would take Axel to return from his errand. "Where the hell is he?" The blonde boy went to stand by the window, staring out the sheer curtain at the snow-covered streets below.

"Hey, Roxas, I've got the-… Oh, shit. I'm sorry," Roxas whipped around to see Axel standing in the doorway, a pizza box balanced on one hand and the key card in the other. The door shut behind him with a loud bang.

Roxas's face turned crimson. Despite having lived together and changed out for gym for almost five months, the two of them had managed to avoid being in the same room together with any clothes missing. This was a first for both of them, and the two boys were unsure what to do or say to break the awkward silence hanging in the air.

Axel walked forwards and set the pizza and keycard down on the dresser, his cheeks the faintest shade of red. He motioned over his shoulder at Roxas's shirt, crumpled up on the floor behind him. "Um… Do you want your shirt?"

"I… Uh…" Roxas could barely form a sentence, let alone make a decision. He just stood there staring at Axel.

The redhead walked forwards to stand a couple of feet away from him. His eyes roved up and down Roxas's body, as if he was appraising it. "You're gorgeous, you know that?"

"I'm what?"

"Gorgeous," Axel repeated. "I dunno what else to call you. I don't think beautiful is quite the right word… Neither is handsome. Even for a writer like me, words escape me when I try to describe you."

Roxas thought somebody could've cooked eggs on his face, it was so hot. "You're weird."

"You know you love me because of it," Axel began to close the distance between the two of them. He stopped in front of Roxas, just close enough so that the blonde could feel the fabric of Axel's shirt on his bare chest. "I love you, you know that?"

"There was a rumor going around," Roxas smirked up at him, standing on his tiptoes to kiss him, but Axel pulled back teasingly. "Aw, come on. You get to kiss me whenever you want, but I can't kiss you? No fair!"

"Life's not fair. Anyone who says different is selling something," Axel replied. He leaned over, but instead of kissing him on the lips, Roxas felt his breath on his neck. The blonde boy shivered as Axel's cold hands traced patterns up his back, leaving an icy trail in their wake. The taller boy moved his head up so that his lips met Roxas's, his tongue sliding out and slicking the other boy's bottom lip with spit. Axel pulled him close all of a sudden, causing him to gasp as bare skin met the remains of snow flurries on Axel's clothes. The redhead's tongue slid between Roxas's lips and began exploring it. The blonde felt helpless, his mind unable to function properly any more.

A spark of panic coursed through Roxas as Axel began tugging at the sides of the waistband of his pajama pants. The blonde tried to turn and pry himself out of Axel's arms, but instead, he tripped over the other boy's feet and fell backwards onto their bed. Roxas froze, but Axel's hands continued to move, pulling the pants down around his hips.

Axel paused when he looked up and saw Roxas's shocked expression. "I… I'll stop, if you want me to. I don't want to do this if it reminds you too much of Namine…"

Roxas felt a _need_ in his gut, an insistent _wanting_ that screamed at him to let Axel continue to what he knew was coming. The only other part of his brain that was able to function was the little voice that most people called their conscious, but its cries were so weak, the instinct to just go with it won out. "Axel… I trust you."

The redhead gave him a reassuring smile and pulled the other boy's pants down around his knees and then all the way off, leaving him in his underwear. Roxas glanced up to see that the bulge in his underwear was already substantial just from thinking about what Axel was going to do.

"Not eager at all, are you?" Axel smiled, running his fingers down the blonde boy's thighs, earning a slight gasp from him. "You have no idea how much I've wanted to do this for the last couple of months."

Roxas wasn't able to express his surprise as this admittance because Axel brushed his hand against his erection, trapped beneath the thin layer of fabric that was his boxers, causing him to moan. The redhead grinned and continued avoiding most direct contact.

"You damn tease!" Roxas hissed as he brushed him again, fingertips lightly pressing the fabric. "Just get on with it already if you're gonna do it!"

Axel grinned. "As you wish, Your Highness." He slowly pulled Roxas's boxers down until they slid off his feet and threw them onto the floor, leaving Roxas lying pinned on the bed beneath him, stark naked. The redhead's fingers met the skin of the other boy's dick and wrapped around it, moving up and down in a slow, rhythmic motion that drove Roxas crazy.

"A-Axel, c'mon, just… Please…" Roxas gasped as the older boy's tongue flicked out, licking the very tip of the head of his cock.

"You said you trust me," he replied. "Keep your word."

Any reply was cut off when Axel's mouth enveloped Roxas's dick, slicking it with spit. A wave of intense pleasure coursed through the blonde boy's body, making him squirm under Axel's hands, tickling the base. Axel began crawling backwards all of a sudden, pulling Roxas with him, mouth still wrapped around him. The blonde followed helplessly, unable to find the words to protest this strange turn of events. Before he knew it, he was leaning back against the edge of the bed with Axel on his knees in front of him, back arching in pleasure as the redhead got down to work. The sparks in Roxas's gut exploded into flames as Axel increased his pace, pulling a small bottle out of his pocket as he did. He squirted some of the gel-like substance onto his finger, and then slid it into Roxas, causing him to writhe.

Axel's finger hit one spot, and Roxas's world was suddenly black night skies filled with popping stars and dizzying swirls of color, interspersed with what could only be described as what heaven might feel like, only much, much better and certainly more tangible.

Roxas's knees gave out and he fell to the floor, limp as a rag doll. Axel rocked back on his heels and then stood, walking to the bathroom. The blonde vaguely heard water run and the sound of spitting before Axel reappeared and handed him his clothes.

"A-Axel… Th-that was…"

Axel pressed a finger to his lips to silence him. Without a word, he handed him a glass of water and said quietly, "Drink."

Roxas obeyed, taking a few sips of the water before he put his clothes back on. After he threw away the paper cup he was holding, Axel pulled him onto the bed and sat him down in his lap, wrapping his arms around him in the familiar embrace.

"I love you," Roxas whispered against the fabric of the blanket Axel wrapped around them again.

"I know. I love you too," Axel replied.

~::~

The two boys woke up the next morning entwined in one another's arms. Roxas's cheek was pressed against Axel's chest, and Axel's chin rested on the blonde's head. The sheets of the bed were tangled around them in an impossible mess of a knot.

"Good morning, beautiful," Axel murmured as Roxas's eyes blinked open. "How're you feeling?"

Roxas yawned. "I dunno. Good, I guess."

"That's good. I'd hate for you to be exhausted after last night's little… uh… ordeal."

Roxas's eyes widened as he remembered what went on the previous night. _I thought that was just a dream… Oh, fuck_. "W-well, we did sleep until…" He glanced at the clock. "…nine in the morning."

Axel suddenly started scrambling to get untangled form the bed clothes. "Shit, my parents are gonna be here in an hour! We've gotta clean this place up. It's a fucking mess!"

Roxas looked around the room with bleary eyes. The remains of their dinner were still on top of the dresser, their dirty clothes were in a pile on the floor nearby, and the pillows from the bed they were sharing were flung haphazardly all over the room.

"How did those pillows get on the other side of the room?" Roxas asked as Axel began sprinting around the room, cleaning as fast as he could.

The redhead paused to look up at him. "You were dreaming that you were fighting a huge fire-breathing dragon."

"And how do you know that?"

Axel's face was completely deadpan as he replied, "You kept smacking me in the face with the pillows and yelling 'Die, stupid dragon, die!' I then disposed of the pillows over there and just about sat on you when you started kicking me."

Roxas was mortified. "Oh God, I'm sorry! I should've warned you of my vivid dreaming when I'm under a lot of stress."

Axel wasn't listening any more. He was doubled over with laughter, leaning back against the side of the other bed. Roxas stared at him in confusion and promptly fell backwards onto the bed, curling up in the still-warm blankets again.

"Hey! Uh-uh! Bad! Get up, Roxas!" A pillow flew through the air and landed square on the blonde boy's face. He sat bolt upright and threw it back at Axel with less-than-perfect aim, hitting his left shoulder with a glancing blow. "Oh, come on, that was weak!" A full-out pillow fight ensued. Roxas eventually lost when Axel braved the no man's land of their bed and pinned him to the floor with two of the pillows.

Somehow, the two boys got the room reasonably clean by the time Axel's parents returned. Mrs. von Fusen hugged both of them and congratulated their ability to keep the room in relative order. Roxas and Axel exchanged a glance, biting their lips to keep from bursting out laughing.

That day and the next passed in a happy blur. Roxas got to give the von Fusens the grand tour of his hometown, showing them the best places to eat, where to buy clothes and food, and the ice cream shop where his beloved sea-salt ice cream was made and sold. The four of them ended up buying scoops of the blue-green treat and eating them slowly, trying not to freeze themselves any further.

"As cold as it is, this stuff if _amazing_," Axel praised the ice cream more with every bite. "I'm not expert, but this is divine!"

"Shut up and eat or we're leaving you here," Roxas replied.

Despite the amiable atmosphere, there was a tangible degree of tension in the air between the two boys. The events of two nights before still hung over them like looming black storm clouds, threatening disaster on the horizon. As much as they tried to ignore it, the feeling of doom persisted.

That night, when they returned to the hotel with their dinner, Chinese take-out from a local restaurant, Axel seemed more worried than usual. After receiving a text around ten that morning, he had been glancing anxiously at his phone all day. Roxas tried to ask him what was wrong, but the redhead waved him away every time.

Halfway through their meal, Axel's cell phone began ringing. He leapt up off the bed and went into the bathroom, answering it as he went. Roxas and his parents stared at each other in confusion. Axel _never_ left a meal without excusing himself. What was so important that he forget such a common courtesy?

They continued eating, but five minutes later, Axel came back out, white as a sheet. His hands shook as he put his cell phone back in his pocket.

Mrs. von Fusen nearly dropped her take-out box. "Axel, honey, what's wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost!"

Axel walked over and sank down onto the bed next to Roxas. He stared at the wall across from him, as if not daring to look at anyone else. No one anticipated his answer.

"Larxene is pregnant."


	11. Chapter Eleven: Misfortunes

**Author's Note:** Muahaha, this chapter made me feel very evil, but I'm relatively sure my characters are going to kill me in my sleep for this... I still have no idea exactly how many more chapters there will be, but don't worry, we're getting there! Lots of drama in this chapter... And so, the plot thickens!

~::~

Roxas stared at Axel, unable to comprehend the information he just acquired. _Larxene is pregnant. Pregnant. Axel must think it's his, after what happened…_

Mrs. von Fusen was the first to react, immediately firing off three questions at her shocked son. "How long has she been pregnant? Did she just find out? Is this your fault?"

Axel stared blankly at her for a few moments before shaking his head and replying, "She didn't tell me. All I know is that she texted me earlier today saying she needed to talk to me, and then she called me a couple minutes ago crying her eyes out and told me she was pregnant. And… this may or may not be my fault. It's either mine or Marluxia's."

His mother's mouth dropped open. "_Axel von Fusen! _What have I always told you about doing things like that in the spur of the moment? Or, worse yet, you planned it and _didn't use protection?_ I'm ashamed that you broke one of the few rules I've set for you. Now is not the time, but I _will_ punish you for this. Understood?"

Roxas and Axel both winced at the harshness in her voice. Mr. von Fusen only shook his head and sighed, unable to do anything to stop the redheaded woman's wrath.

All of the fight left Axel's mother when she saw the sad, shocked faces of the other three occupants of the room. "I'm sorry for yelling like that. But Axel, I really thought you had better judgment than that. If the baby really is yours, then we'll find a way to make it work. If it's not… well, either way, you're in big trouble, young man. And I should give Marluxia a stern talking to as well, if his parents are unaware of this."

"No need," Axel grimaced. "They already know, but they don't give a rat's ass about what he does, as long as he doesn't kill or rob anybody."

Mrs. von Fusen's mouth thinned into a stern, disapproving line. "Well, in that case… Look, I know you haven't met Roxas's friends yet, so why don't you two go see them and give your father and me some time to talk over this?"

Axel, utterly defeated, nodded weakly and began getting ready to leave. Roxas stared at him as he moved, walking as if the air were thick as molasses._ Poor guy. His parents weren't supposed to ever find that out… But if they know about this now, how long will it be before they discover what's going on between me and Axel?_ He shook his head, ending that dismal train of thought. He went to prepare for the excursion that was being forced upon them as well, not even bothering to spike his hair that morning. He was too tired, too devoid of any real will to do anything but walk beside Axel as they made their way down to the bottom floor of the hotel via the steps and then head outside into the newly fallen snow from the previous night.

"Axel, I-…"

The redhead waved a hand, cutting him off. "Don't talk to me right now, okay?"

Roxas nodded and followed a few steps behind him, the frigid air between them silent as the grave. A few moments later, Axel turned to look at him. "I forgot. I don't know where the hell we're going."

Roxas gave him a weak smile and took his hand. "Come on. I'll show you the way."

Several minutes of walking led them to the small dead-end alley where Roxas used to hang out with his old group of friends, dubbed "the usual spot" many years before. A thick red curtain kept out the questioning gaze of unwanted trespassers and the snow. Roxas could hear voices from inside, not too surprised that even in this weather, his old friends would still be there.

"Hey, guys. I've got somebody I want you to meet!" He put on a cheerful face as he pushed aside the curtain, hiding the turmoil of thoughts in his head.

"Roxas!" Hayner immediately leapt up and ran over, but stopped abruptly when Axel stepped in after the blonde. "No way. This can't be the infamous Axel, can it?"

Axel glanced down at Roxas. "Infamous?"

"It's a long story," He waved a hand in dismissal. "Yes, this is Axel, my obnoxious redheaded roommate. Feel free to question him until he keels over from exhaustion."

Olette crossed her arms over her chest, gazing at Axel with her dark, intelligent eyes from her perch on the arm of the shabby sofa pushed up against the walls between two stacks of crates. "He's not what I expected. I thought he would be… well, not so skinny. The way you described him to us made him sound like some sort of Greek god or something."

Axel flung an arm around the madly blushing Roxas's shoulders. "A god, eh? Seems like you've been saying quite a bit about me, and not just my charming personality or IQ of one hundred and eighty."

"First of all," Roxas began, face deadpan, "you are neither charming, nor do you have an IQ that high. Second, I did not make it sound like you were a Greek god. I just… exaggerated the truth a little."

"Just a little?" Axel leaned over to kiss him, but the blonde boy dodged it and slid out of his grasp. "I think you're just embarrassed to say what an impression I've made on you."

"Okay, lovebirds, why don't you sit down?" Pence chuckled nervously, obviously not comfortable with the idea of Roxas and Axel acting that way.

Roxas made a face at him and dragged Axel over to the couch, taking a seat next to Olette. Before he could protest, Axel pulled the blonde into his lap. "You're gonna make them kick us out," Roxas hissed. "I want them to like you, not think you're a flaming homosexual!"

Axel patted the top of his hair. "Well, I _am_ flaming, but not in the way you're saying it. Also, I am _not_ homosexual. I swing both ways."

Hayner and Pence both had their noses scrunched up in disgust. Olette broke the awkward silence that followed. "So how have you been, Roxas? It's been a while since you last called."

"Sorry about that," Roxas scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I meant to, but we had end of the semester exams, and I was swamped for a while there. I've been okay, though. Nothing really worth mentioning has happened since I talked to you last, except for the massive blizzard that hit our city."

"Well, you could've at _least_ told use you were coming. We could've thrown a party for you!" Pence said. "I bet Mom would've cooked half the fridge again."

Roxas chuckled, knowing there was a certain degree of truth behind that statement. "Sorry. I totally forgot. I bet she would have."

"There could have been food involved in this? Why didn't you tell them we were here!" Axel exclaimed.

"You idiot, we just ate dinner!" Roxas retorted, earning chuckles from his friends.

"So Axel, seeing as we're Roxas's friends and this is the first time we've met, we have to get to know you a bit before we can trust you. Tell us about yourself," Hayner commanded.

Axel sat in silence for a few moments, Hayner, Pence, and Olette staring intently at him. Finally, he said, "Well, the most important thing you'll ever need to know about me is that I'd never hurt Roxas on purpose, not in a million years. I've been through some pretty shitty times myself, and I don't want him to go through that."

"Do you promise not to hurt him?"

Axel's body tensed. "I… I can't promise anything. But I'll do my best. Nobody's perfect, right?"

Olette seemed to pick up the subtleties of that statement better than Hayner and Pence. "You're right. No one is perfect, no matter what we do. Just be good to him. If he's happy, then we're happy."

Axel nodded, and then looked down at Roxas. "Hey, it's starting to get dark. Think we should head back? I don't want Mom any angrier at me than she is now."

Roxas nodded and stood up. "Hey, it was great seeing you guys again, but we've gotta run. Axel's mom will kill us if we get back too late. I'll see you later, okay?"

His three friends nodded and Axel and Roxas stepped back out into the snow, hurrying through the white landscape until they made it safely back to the hotel. Before they entered the room, Axel pulled Roxas close and kissed him, just once, and then stepped inside. Bewildered, the blonde boy brushed his fingertips across his lips and followed.

"Hey, we're back," Axel said, sounding very unenthusiastic.

His parents looked up from their spot on their bed. The TV was on, blaring some obnoxious commercial advertising a car dealership two towns over.

"Hi, boys," Mrs. von Fusen replied. "How do you feel about leaving tomorrow?"

Axel and Roxas exchanged a glance. "That's cool," the redhead answered.

"Good. We can start getting ready for Christmas early. It's in a little over week, I believe," Axel's mother beamed at them. "Oh, did I mention that some of the family is coming over to celebrate with us?"

Roxas glanced at Axel, unsure what to make of this. Judging by the horrified look that passed over the other boy's face, this was going to be living hell.

~::~

It was. Most of Axel's visiting family seemed to be opposed to the idea of his parents taking Roxas in despite having no real obligation other than a friendship. The presents the blonde boy received from the von Fusens and his friends back in Twilight Town did little to ease the tension in the air throughout the three days Axel's relatives spent in town.

Christmas Day was in itself a harrowing ordeal. After opening presents, Axel and Roxas attempted to retreat back to their room to get a few quiet moments to themselves, but Axel's younger cousins barged in right as the two were about to kiss, causing a very awkward conversation to ensue. Thankfully, Axel's way with words allowed him to come up with an excuse convincing enough to make the cousins believe an entirely different scenario had just occurred. Later that day, after a light lunch, the redhead's great aunt began interrogating Roxas, trying to find a reason for him to be shipped off to live with his actual relatives thousands of miles away rather than be with what she deemed "a family that should be the ones asking favors, not giving them out like cheap toys." After several minutes of tense silence and Roxas trying to restrain Axel's temper, the two boys confined themselves to their room, locking the door behind them until the next morning when the relatives left.

"No offense, but your family is a bunch of assholes," Roxas commented as he watched them pile into the cars they came in, dragging suitcases behind them. Mr. and Mrs. von Fusen were helping, cheery smiles plastered on their faces, probably just as weary of them as the two boys were.

Axel sighed and jammed his fists in his pockets. "Hmph. None taken. But not all of them are like that. Some of my family is great. Unfortunately, all of the ones who are great live a long way away from here."

The blonde responded with a noncommittal grunt, unsure what to say to that. His own family had never been very large, but they had been a tight-knit group. With a pang that nearly made him double over in surprise, he realized that this had been the first Christmas that he hadn't shared with his family. _Shit_._ How did I forget that? Stupid idiot. You were so wrapped up in yourself..._

"Roxas?" The blonde looked up at Axel. "Are… Are you okay?"

When the redhead tried to reach out to him, the blonde shoulder past him brusquely and began climbing the stairs to their room. "I'm fine."

"Liar."

Roxas turned to look at Axel, several feet below him now. "What did you say?"

"Liar," the redhead repeated. "You're not fine. You're about as fine as that icky wool stuff my Great Aunt Martha was wearing. Man up and tell me what's wrong."

"What do you know?" Roxas snapped, eyes narrowing. "This was this first Christmas I've ever had to live through without my parents. You can't possibly get what it feels like!"

Axel's temper was inching closer to boiling point. "Oh, and losing my _best friend_ totally doesn't count for anything, does it?"

"I lost my _parents_, for fuck's sake. I think that's a whole lot more irreplaceable than a friend!"

Axel stared at him for a moment, stunned speechless, before he bellowed, "_Fuck you,_ Roxas, damn you and your fucking pride to Hell!"

Before he could stop himself, Roxas blurted out angrily, "You'd like to fuck me, wouldn't you? I bet that's all you really care about, isn't it? How much you want to shove your dick up my ass."

"Bullshit!" Axel proceeded to curse him for twenty different kinds of an idiot before continuing. "That's not what this is about! I just want to _help you_, damnit! Don't you get it? The whole world's not out to get you, but they won't pity you if you act this pathetic, either. Lean on somebody else for once!"

"You know what, fuck _you!_" Roxas shouted back. "I don't want your help! I never asked for any! Just _leave me the fuck alone!_" With that, he turned and sprinted up the stairs and slammed the door of their room behind him, locking it shut. He turned and leaned against the wood of the door, letting himself slide down its length until he was sitting on the carpeted floor, knees bunched up to his chest. A solitary tear traced its way down his cheek, and before he could stop it, more followed. Quiet sobs wracked his body as he sat there for who knows how long, regretting every single word he had said to Axel.

~::~

The onset of the second semester of school and slightly warmer weather did little to dissipate the chill in the air that remained between Axel and Roxas after their fight. The two had barely said a word to each other for over a week and a half now, and Demyx and Zexion were starting to get worried enough to speculate behind their backs.

"Think they had a bad fight or something?" Demyx asked one day at lunch when he thought Roxas wasn't listening. "I've never seen them like this before…"

Zexion sighed into his glass of water. "It would seem so. I doubt we'll find out what it is they fought over for a while yet, but it will blow over eventually. Things like this are usually short-lived, in cases like these. The only thing we can do is wait and hope that they don't kill each other."

Roxas was about to open his mouth to protest when, much to his surprise, Namine walked over and sat down next to him. The pretty blonde girl smiled sweetly at him while still managing to send a dirty look Axel's way at the same time. _I haven't really talked to her for months… What's she doing over here?_

Demyx choked on whatever he was drinking, quickly trying to make it look as if Zexion had said something funny and he was laughing at that, not expressing his shock at Namine's sudden appearance. The scholarly Zexion merely stared at her with mild interest for a moment before returning to reading the book in his hands.

"Um… Hi, Namine," Roxas said nervously. "What's up?"

"I could feel the angry vibes radiating from you and Firecrotch all the way over at my table," she said airily. "I thought you could use a way to get rid of some of that stress. I can give you that."

"What do you mean by… a way? Is it what I'm thinking, or is it something else?" The blonde boy bit his lip.

Namine's smile told him the answer before she uttered another word. "I'm sure we're thinking on the same lines. So what do you say?"

The part of Roxas's brain that regretted his fight with Axel started setting off every warning signal it could, trying to deter him from saying yes. However, the anger that remained smoldering in the pit of his stomach flared up again, drowning out any shards of good judgment left in him. "Give me a time and place, and I'll be there."

Axel, who had been trying to avert his attention from their conversation up until this point looked up sharply, eyes widening in utter astonishment.

"My parents are out of town at the moment, so anytime you can get out tonight. Call me when you're on your way, and I'll give you directions to my house," Namine stood and began to walk back to her own table when she turned back, as if she had forgotten to say something. "Oh. And I'd suggest bringing an extra set of clothes, just in case." With one angelic smile, she was gone.

Zexion, Demyx, and Axel stared at Roxas in horror as he went back to eating his lunch as if nothing had just happened. The blonde boy glanced up at them, the picture of innocent bewilderment. "What? Is there something on my face?"

Mercifully, the bell rang before any of them could start either beleaguering him with questions or the conveniently heavy textbooks in their backpacks. Roxas returned to his locker to grab one of his binders. Upon opening it, a piece of pink construction paper cut in the shape of a heart floated to the ground. He picked it up and turned it over to find another confusing message and string of meaningless letters, without any sign of who was leaving them. If any of the other students had been in close proximity to him at that moment, the blonde would have most likely ripped them to shreds to take out the frustration he felt. _Nine of these fucking messages, and still no clue as to who the hell is leaving them. Way to drive me insane, whoever the sick bastard behind this is!_

It didn't help that Roxas's next class was one where he was stuck with Axel and no one else to talk to, not that he would be able to do much talking in the state he was now. To make matters worse, the one day he desperately needed to get away from Axel the most lest he kill him, all of the other seats in the room were taken but the one directly next to the redhead.

Bristling with ill-concealed rage, Roxas went to sit next to him, avoiding all contact with Axel. The redhead seemed mildly surprised that the blonde was actually sitting there instead of kicking some one else out of their seat. However, for fear of getting his "balls chopped off with a blunt axe and lots of hot water," or so Roxas had threatened two days earlier, he kept his mouth shut for once.

The small remainder of the school day would have passed quietly had Axel not accidentally let Roxas hear a not-so-nice comment made about him to Demyx. Right in the middle of a singing a song in choir, the blonde boy turned and slugged Axel across the face in a blind fit of rage. The redhead stared at him it complete shock for an instant before returning the blow. Within moments, the fist fight turned into an all-out brawl, one that ended up taking three teachers and several students to break up.

Axel and Roxas were dragged to the principal's office, still glaring daggers at each other, and then sentenced to a week of morning detention. Roxas barely managed to stop from grumbling under his breath, which would have added another week, judging by the look of total disapproval on the principal's face. Neither of the boys was too scared of him to begin with, but they'd rather endure a week of only slightly tedious detention. They weren't all that scared of getting up a little earlier than usual.

Mrs. von Fusen, on the other hand, terrified, them. The instant they set foot in the house after getting home that afternoon, she grounded them, starting the next day, and informed them that the only things they would be allowed to do were schoolwork and the things essential to stay alive, such as eating.

Roxas breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He could still escape to Namine's house that night and think nothing of it. He did just that a few hours later, after having slightly burned pork roast for dinner. Still trying to dissipate the scent of charred pig on his breath with mints, he took Mrs. von Fusen's car on the pretense of a study session with Zexion to improve his low B in English.

The blonde fished his cell phone out of his pocket as he pulled out of the driveway. He dialed Namine's number and waited until he heard her pick up. "Namine? Hey, it's Roxas."

"Hey, babe," she cooed into her end of the line. "Okay. Need directions?"

"Actually, just your address. This car has a GPS, thank God," Roxas replied.

"Okay. It's 1566 Parkview Lane. Got it?"

The little voice in the back of Roxas's head completed the sentence automatically with "memorized?" The blonde boy almost slammed his head on the dashboard. He recovered sufficiently to punch in the address in the GPS and then reply, "Yep, we're good to go. I'll see you soon. Okay? Bye."

He hung up and continued driving, following the directions the voice emanating from the GPS gave him. Soon he arrived in front of a two-story house fronted with gray stone and navy blue shutters on the windows. The yard in front of it was in pristine condition despite the snow that had been plaguing them for the past few weeks.

Roxas sat there in the car for a few minutes, really thinking this out before he did something irreversible. Yes, he was mad at Axel, yes, Namine _might_ be able to alleviate some of his stress, but would that last forever? No. Was this probably a bad idea? Of course it was. Did he really want to go through with this? Well, that was questionable.

Finally, Roxas came to a decision about what he would do. He took a deep breath and slid out of the car, shutting the door behind him. The extra clothes he had brought were left on the passenger seat, forgotten. He wouldn't need them anyways.

Namine was waiting for him when he walked up and rang the doorbell. The pretty blonde girl smiled brightly and led him into the living room a little ways down a hall to the right. "So, what do you think? It's nice, isn't it?" Roxas had to agree. The furniture was tasteful, the colors went well together, and the carpet was spotless. "My mother's an interior designer. She can do things like this in her sleep. I think she actually did once, now that I think about it. Anyways… Are you hungry or anything? We wouldn't want you to faint on an empty stomach, would we?"

"I already ate dinner. Thank you for the offer, though," the blonde boy replied politely. "So… what exactly is your plan?"

Namine' s innocent smile transformed into a subtly seductive smirk. She held out a hand. "Follow me."

Roxas did. They ended up in a room down another hallway, pure white from ceiling to floor, except for the bed in the center, which was a deep midnight blue sprinkled with tiny patches of silver. The walls of Namine's bedroom were covered with sheets of paper bursting with portraits people and colorful nature scenes, all done with the steady, skillful hand of an artist.

"Did you _draw_ all of those?" he asked incredulously, unable to believe that one person could make so many pictures.

Namine beamed, obviously glad that he liked it. "Yep! I've been drawing ever since I was little. But that's a story for another time. Right now, we have more important business to worry about…"

In a flash, Namine was embracing Roxas, her lips crushed against his. The blonde boy leaned into the kiss, allowing his hands to travel just below her waist to rest at the base of her hips. His tongue slid out and between Namine's slightly parted lips. A short battle between their tongues ensued, but Roxas ended up the victor, gaining the upper hand. He slowly pushed the smaller girl back towards the bed, running his hands up and down her sides as he did so.

Namine pulled back to catch her breath for a moment. "I like a man who knows what he wants," she purred.

Roxas grinned back and kissed her again, finally succeeding in getting her pinned against the bed. He tilted his head to the side and leaned down so he could bite the tender flesh at the base of Namine's neck, resulting in a quiet gasp from the girl beneath him. He began unbuttoning the front of her shirt as he kissed her again, ignoring his growing erection, already straining against the front of his jeans. _Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Ah, fuck…_

Soon, Namine's blouse was off, and she broke their kissing to pull Roxas's shirt off. The blonde boy then proceeded to tug her skirt down until it finally slid off and fell to the floor in a heap of pink chiffon along with the other clothes they had discarded.

Roxas paused for moment once this was done. He felt like the front of his jeans was about to rip open, but still he did his best to just _ignore it, damnit_. The blonde boy stared down into Namine's ocean blue eyes and realized just how _cold_ they really were, full of nothing but shallow desires and empty words.

"Namine, I do hope you know I'm a virgin," he informed her.

"I'm surprised by that. I was sure you'd found at _least_ one person you deemed hot enough to fuck. Or one hot enough to fuck _you_," she replied, arching her back in a stretch that was more seductive than anything else. "Not that I care. I can give you pointers, if you'd like."

"See, that's the thing," Roxas knew he was on the right track as Namine's expression changed from triumph to confusion. "How many people have you slept with? Dozens? Hundreds? And still you act like they're nothing, just playthings to be used once and then thrown away like garbage. Hasn't at least one of them really meant anything to you?"

"W-what are you talking about?" she spluttered, quickly losing the confident air that she usually carried. "I haven't slept with that many people! I would never do something like that! I love you Roxas, you know that, right?"

"Now I see why Axel hates you so much. You're so pathetic, how could anybody ever stand to spend more than one night with you?" Roxas smirked down at the stunned Namine. "Sorry, honey, but I'm worth more than any cheap whore could ever afford."

With that, he slid off the bed, picked up his shirt, and pulled it over his head as he walked towards the doorway. Namine's next words stopped him in his tracks.

"Tell Axel I said 'Thank you for Saturday night.' I'm sure he'll want to know what he did was appreciated."

Roxas didn't allow her to see the way his eyes widened or the way his breath caught in his throat. He felt like he was about to throw up. _No. He wouldn't have. He hates her. She has to be lying. She has to._ The blonde boy ran out of the room and through the house until he made it to the front door. This he flung open and then continued on his way, not caring whether it shut behind him or not. Once he made it to the car, he sank back in the driver's seat, still unable to believe that Axel would do such a thing, fight or no fight. Gritting his teeth, the blonde boy started the car and headed for home.

~::~

One week of morning detention was almost more than Roxas could handle after that night's revelations. In his eyes, Axel was now a lying, cheating, disgustingly easy to like bitch, just like Namine. He could barely look at him without wanting to kill him and do horrible, _horrible_ things to his corpse. The redhead seemed to pick up on these murderous intents because he kept his distance from the blonde as often as he could.

There was little to break the monotony of Roxas's life for the next few weeks. Hours slipped into days, flowing like an endless river with no banks in sight. Schoolwork was done, tests were taken, and many sleepless nights were had. Axel had not touched Roxas once for almost three whole weeks now, and despite still being angry at him, the blonde sorely missed the contact between them. But still, due to either the last shreds of rage that remained in his heart or his cowardice, nothing was said. Nothing changed.

One day in mid-February, Roxas found himself teetering on the brink between a B and a C in several of his classes. Report cards were going home in a few weeks' time, but he wasn't sure if he cared enough anymore to even bother bringing them back up.

"You know, I've heard rumors that Mr. Knightley's gonna give out major bonus points to anyone who tries out for the school play," Demyx suggested during English that day.

Roxas looked up at him, eyebrows inclined in an expression of mild interest. "Oh really?"

"If you two would actually listen to him, you would know for certain. He's talking about it right now," Zexion interjected. The other two boys quieted and turned their attention to their teacher.

"As I'm sure many of you are aware, the school's drama club is going to be putting on the play _Romeo and Juliet_ later this semester. Considering how much reading we have done from Shakespeare's plays this year, I will be offering twenty-five bonus points on the semester exam for anyone who auditions, providing they actually try to do their best."

A gasp of excitement arose from the class. A teacher offering that many extra points was unheard of, let alone on an exam! After class that day, there was a long waiting list for the sign-up sheet, but Zexion somehow managed to get the four of them, Axel included, on the roster.

Roxas was unsure if this was a good idea, but he went along with it anyways, almost certain there was no way in hell he would actually be chosen for a significant part. Someone like axel or Zexion was more suited to that, seeing how well-versed in Shakespeare the two were.

They spent the next few afternoons at auditions and numerous callbacks to determine roles and crew positions. The crew list was posted first after all of the auditions were over. The choice for the lead staff member of the backstage crew was none other than Kairi, which came as quite a shock to the others who had tried out.

The next day, Axel, Roxas, Demyx, and Zexion walked towards the cast list posted on the bulletin board by the drama classroom apprehensively, unsure whether or not they actually wanted to know if they had been chosen for parts.

Demxy scrutinized it for a moment before he exhaled a heavy sigh of relief. "My name's not there."

Zexion's response to the list, however, was les than happy. "Friar Lawrence. Hmm. This should be very interesting."

Axel took one look at it and stormed off down the hallway, face livid with anger. The other three boys stared at him in confusion. Only when they inspected the list again did they see why the redhead was so enraged.

"Oh God," Roxas breathed. "You've got to be _shitting _me_._"

"Romeo will be played by: Axel von Fusen. Juliet will be played by: Larxene Thorne. The Nurse will be played by: Namine Swift. Tybalt will be played by: Roxas Sinclair," Zexion stopped reading it out loud and turned to look at the blonde boy. "Roxas, you do realize what this means, correct?"

"Um… am I supposed to?" The blonde asked.

"Romeo and Tybalt duel, the latter of whom is killed by Romeo. You two will have to practice the fight scene with long, possibly deadly objects," Zexion replied.

"…_fuck_."


	12. Chapter Twelve: Miracles

**Author's Note:** Alright, guys, only one more chapter left! I wish I could could draw it out longer, but the end is already written, so I'm uploading it right after this. No more waiting for the end. Now, read and enjoy!

~::~

Play practice turned out to be slightly more enjoyable than Roxas first imagined it would be. In his first week there, he had already gotten to insult Axel multiple times through use of the dialogue, although the fight scene between the two of them had yet to be practiced. Kairi turned out to be a real slave driver when it came to getting things done both on stage and behind the scenes. Zexion complained about having to wear the long robes of a friar, saying that the practice set he was given were too big for a person of as small a stature as he possessed.

After about a week, Mr. Knightley, who was helping instruct the students in the proper way to deliver the lines of the play, became fed up with how terrible their accents were and began shouting at them, using as many colorful insults as he could. "Thou art a bunch of scurvy knaves! Canst thou do anything right? Lily-livered sons of dogs, hark to my words of wisdom and act upon them!"

"Some of us are _daughters,_ thank you very much," Larxene pointed out, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Aye, indeed thou art. Still, fair maiden, thou cannot speak in the fashion Shakespeare's plays were delivered in," Mr. Knightley replied, making a sweeping bow in the direction of the impatient blonde girl. She sniffed and turned away to continue talking with Kairi about her positioning in the next scene.

Axel was impeccable at everything, much to Roxas's disgust. The redhead strutted about the stage, delivering his lines with a precision and passion that would have made any professional actor jealous. It didn't help that he was one of the few people there that was also a natural at faking accents.

"I really hate that man," Roxas muttered under his breath as he took his place to practice one of the early scenes from the play.

"What was that, Tybalt?" The redhead brushed past him, a mocking smirk curling one corner of his lips.

"Nothing, Romeo," The blonde sneered back. "Too bad we haven't gotten to do the fight scene yet. I can't wait to kick your ass."

"Ah, but you forget, dearest Tybalt. _I_ am the one who defeats _you_, if I recall correctly."

"But only after I kill one of your best friends."

Axel paused. "Touché."

Sora and Riku, who had been cast as Mercutio and Benvolio respectively, glanced at the quarreling pair nervously as they took their places.

"You don't think they'll actually try and kill each other when we do the fight scene, do you?" Sora's eyebrows furrowed, clearly showing how worried he was.

Riku rolled his eyes and adjusted the front of his practice costume. "They could try, but I've seen the swords they're going to be using, and the only way they could kill each other with those things is if they bludgeon the other poor bastard to death."

"Oh. I guess that's… kinda reassuring," the brunette replied.

At the end of that days' practice, Mr. Knightley pulled Roxas and Axel aside on their way out of the theater. "I know we haven't done any staging for it yet, but I'd like you two to begin practicing the fight scene between Tybalt and Romeo outside of school, if you don't mind. Would you be able to do that?"

Before Roxas could protest, Axel nodded in agreement. "We'd be happy to. Anything in particular you'd like us to do?"

"See if you can find some video clips of the fights done in past productions of the play and base the choreography of the fight off of those. Other than that, just make sure you're practicing your lines. Alright?" Mr. Knightley replied.

"I've got it memorized!" Axel saluted, while Roxas just nodded and then proceeded to walk away. The redhead followed after him, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Happy now, Tybalt?"

"Call me that one more time, and I'll rip your head off."

Neither of the two boys said a word as Mrs. von Fusen picked them up and drove them back home. After dinner, they went upstairs to do homework, still silent. After about forty minutes, Axel set down his binder and climbed up the ladder to Roxas's bed.

"We're practicing the fight scene now."

Roxas didn't even look up at him. "I'm busy."

"I said, we're practicing the fight scene now," Axel repeated impatiently, grabbing the blonde boy by the ankles and dragging him towards the edge of the bed.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing?" Roxas growled between smothered giggles. Despite being angry at Axel, his ankles were still ticklish. "Let me go, damnit!"

"I refuse," Axel succeeded in picking him up and carrying him down the ladder. "We're gonna practice this thing while I'm still coherent enough to."

"Fine!" Roxas snapped, pushing Axel away from him. "What are we gonna use for swords?"

"I've got it covered," Axel pulled two wooden dowels out from under his bed and handed one to Roxas.

The blonde boy stared at it in confusion. "Why the hell were these under your bed?"

"I had to hide them from Mom somehow," the other boy shrugged. He took up a fighting stance and pointed the end of his "sword" at Roxas. "Well, let's see what you can do. I bet I can beat you with my eyes closed!"

"Oh, I'll be fine. I took fencing lessons when I was younger," Roxas allowed himself a small smile as he saw the look of surprise on Axel's face. He, too, poised himself for battle. "Good luck."

The two lunged at each other, forgetting completely that this was a scene from the play and not a real fight. The two pieces of wood clacked sharply as they struck each other. Roxas quickly took the upper hand, pushing Axel back towards the wall with a flurry of quick, calculated blows and parries. The blonde boy almost had him pinned when Axel stuck out a foot and tripped Roxas, making him fall backwards and lose his grip on his "sword" in the process. The redhead fell almost as fast as the smaller boy did, ending up pinning his arms to floor, straddling his waist. Axel's "sword" lay discarded a couple of feet away.

"What the fuck, Axel," Roxas said, face expressionless. "You cheated."

"How else would I have gotten you like this?" Any reply was forestalled when Axel leaned down and kissed Roxas hungrily, keeping him pinned to the floor. The blonde boy, unable to struggle, turned his face away an instant later.

"Don't," he said, not looking at Axel.

"Why are you still mad at me?" Roxas looked back up in surprise when he heard the pained desperation in the other boy's voice. "I don't want to keep fighting like this forever. It's been at least a month. I can't take it anymore. Please."

"Did you sleep with Namine the Saturday after we started fighting?"

The question took Axel by surprise. "I… no! Who told you that?"

"Namine said to say 'thank you for Saturday night' when I went over to her house. I assumed that you two fucked, considering how she acts," Roxas replied. "And in case you were wondering, which I know you were, I didn't do anything with her. I told her what I really thought of her and left her there in her underwear."

Axel stared at him open-mouthed. "You're joking, right? You actually thought that I would…? Roxas, you've got it all wrong! She's been going out with Seifer since last December, and they had a bad break up. I felt sorry for her, so I let her talk to me to get out all the anger."

"But… but you _hate_ her!" Roxas exclaimed. "Why the hell would you do that for her?"

Axel sighed. "Yes, I know I frequently make it look like I hate her, but the truth is, we used to be good friends. We knew each other when we were little, went to the same school, even had a little romance for a while before she started sleeping around. She only hates me now because she tried to give up her virginity to me one night, but I left her there just like you did a few weeks ago. She never forgave me for that. That girl can hold a grudge longer than the pyramids are gonna last. But I… I _did_ forgive her. I didn't want to hate one of my best friends. I only play along now to try and teach her a lesson, to try and make her see what she's doing is wrong."

Roxas stared at him in utter shock. Unable to speak, he just stared up into Axel's sad green eyes until the redhead stood and helped him up. "_That's_ why you didn't want me to go anywhere near her? Because you were trying to teach her a lesson?"

"That, and… Well, to be honest, I loved you from the first day I met you."

_Oh, no, cue the clichéd love-at-first-sight thing_. "You're kidding me, right? Since the first day I showed up?"

Axel's face turned scarlet and he looked away. "Yes. I thought you were so… I dunno, interesting, I guess, and I just couldn't get enough of you. I know I was a dick those first couple of weeks, but I just wasn't used to having you around constantly yet."

"Oh. Um… How am I supposed to react to that knowledge?"

"You could kiss me?" Axel said hopefully.

Roxas crossed his arms. "Really, that's all you can think up? Kiss me? You've got to do better than that."

"Alright then, kiss me _now_." The blonde boy obliged, wrapping his arms around Axel's neck as he leaned down to press their lips together. The taller boy slid his arms around Roxas's waist, pulling him closer. Their kiss deepened, and Roxas entwined a hand into Axel's wild red hair, unrestrained by a hair tie for once. "I missed this," Axel whispered against the blonde's lips. "More than you could imagine."

"I think I know how you feel," Roxas replied, pulling back for a moment to catch his breath. "As much as I hated you the last few weeks, I felt… empty, without you."

"So no more fighting?" Axel tilted his head up so their eyes met.

Roxas smiled. "No more fighting."

They kissed again, bodies entwining themselves in a passionate embrace. The voice in the back of Roxas's mind was stuck on repeating, echoing its own elated cry of _I love you, Axel, I love you more than anything in the world._

"Boys, do you have any laundry that-… _what are you doing?_" Axel and Roxas leapt apart and turned to the doorway to see Mrs. von Fusen standing in the doorway holding an empty laundry basket, mouth hanging open in shock.

"Shit. Mom, it's not-…"

"Axel, I swear to all that is holy, please tell me that was _not_ what I think it was," his mother said through gritted teeth, dropping her basket and covering her face with her hands.

"Mom… I… it was. I'm sorry. I can't lie to you about something like this," Axel replied, looking away.

"I thought she knew that you were bi!" Roxas hissed.

"I kept it a secret all these years. I was afraid of what my parents would say," Axel replied. "I was afraid of what everybody would say. You were the first person to find out, right before I told Zexion and Demyx."

Mrs. von Fusen looked up at the two of them. "Axel, why would you keep that a secret from us? We would have supported you no matter what. You're our only son. I always wondered how I would react if you ended up being gay or bisexual, but I always thought you would tell us before I walked in on you with another boy… I didn't want to find out like this, especially since you and Roxas have shared a room for the better part of the last year."

Axel winced. "I'm so sorry. I won't lie anymore. So… are you gonna punish us?"

Mrs. von Fusen looked like she was on the verge of doing just that, but instead, she walked forwards and hugged both of the boys at once. "No. Just don't do anything inappropriate, alright? Not that either of you could get pregnant, but… still." After an awkward pause, she let them go and picked up the discarded laundry basket before heading back downstairs.

Axel's knees gave out and he sat down hard, breathing a heavy sigh of relief. "Oh, thank the fucking Lord. I can't believe she took that so well. I spent all for that time hiding it for nothing…"

"Not for nothing. At least we know you're not a totally hopeless liar," Roxas sat down next to him, smiling. "But believe me, I'm as relieved as you are. I could've sworn she was gonna kill us for a minute there. And speaking of getting pregnant… I know this is probably not a good time to bring this up, but have you gotten any more news from Larxene?"

Axel glanced at him. "I have, actually. She said she's going to get a DNA test done at the end of next month, right after the play ends. By the time we graduate, we'll know who the father is."

"And if it's Marluxia's, can we beat him up?" Roxas asked hopefully.

Axel shook his head. "No. If it's his, I swear I'll never be mean to him again. He'll have saved my ass from a shitload of trouble."

"Damn. I was really looking forwards to kicking his ass."

~::~

The next couple of weeks could only be described by being a happy blur. Now that he and Axel were talking again, Roxas felt as if he could fly if somebody asked him to. His grades surged up into the mid-to-high A range, stunning his teachers with his sheer will to work. He spent hours memorizing and rehearsing his lines for the play with Axel, who seemed very happy to have his company once more.

Mr. von Fusen readily accepted the fact that Axel was bisexual, stunning his son and his wife when he said that he, too, had once been known to date men in the days before he met Axel's mother.

Namine and Larxene were all but forgotten, aside from the fact that both blonde girls shot Axel and Roxas dirty looks every time they were within two feet of each other. Axel tried to be as cordial as he could while acting in the scenes between himself and Larxene as Romeo and Juliet, despite her reluctance to go anywhere near him any more. Namine, as Juliet's nurse, only had limited interactions with the redhead, but Axel always managed to stay as far on her good side as he could.

Marluxia, who had been cast as Paris, was the only person left to cause any real trouble for the two boys. On several occasions he tried to provoke Axel to fight him, but the redhead merely let the insults the pink-haired boy flung at him roll off his back, trying to be as aggravatingly nice to him as he possibly could.

"Oh, you dropped your sword, Marly," the redhead would say every time they fought during the graveyard scene in a tone so kindhearted that it made Marluxia cringe. "Here, let me help you with that. No, no, you're holding it all wrong. It's supposed to go like _this_. There you go!"

Roxas and several of the other cast and crew members found themselves unable to control their laughter, resulting in Mr. Knightley and the drama teacher kicking them out of the theater until the scene was done being rehearsed.

"Marluxia's gonna murder us all," Sora giggled as he led Riku out of the darkened theater into the fluorescent lights of the hallway. "Did you see the look on his face?"

Roxas, following behind them, nodded in agreement as the brunette turned to look at him. "I don't think I've ever seen anybody's face get that red! I envy Axel's way with words."

"Don't we all?" replied Riku. "He's a genius."

Even Zexion, who prided himself on his prowess with the English language, had to agree.

As the weeks wound down towards the end of the school year, the senior class became lazier and lazier. All but a small percentage of them had managed to get good enough grades throughout the year to exempt all of their exams. This allowed those participating in the play to breathe for a while and spend more time making sure they were ready for the play's opening night, now just a few days away.

Axel and Roxas had already started considering what colleges they might want to attend after graduating, even before they were home free from high school forever. Axel wanted a school that had a good veterinary program, whereas Roxas was unsure what exactly it was he wanted to do with the rest of his life.

"We could always go to the same college," Axel suggested. "I could take the classes I need, and you could explore your possibilities. I'm sure there's tons of stuff you'd enjoy doing."

"I hope you're right," Roxas sighed. "But the same college? Really?"

"Yeah. I bet we could room together and everything. Why break the habit now?" the redhead replied. "besides, I'd like to keep you around a little longer before you run off to go work."

Roxas rolled his eyes as Axel leaned over to kiss him. "Fine. I'll see what I can do about that."

"Great. Oh, here's one program that sounds promising…"

~::~

The opening day of _Romeo and _Juliet crept up on the actors and actresses, stealthier than a thief in the night. Roxas had never thought stage fright would be a big problem for him, but at the moment he wasn't so sure. He'd been perfectly comfortable practicing on the stage with only the crew and a few other students and assorted teachers watching, but now, peeking out from behind the curtains at the huge audience assembling in Traverse High's theater, he felt his stomach begin to tie itself in knots. He pulled back and slumped down in a chair, holding his midriff.

"I think I'm gonna be sick," he declared as Axel, looking dashing in a thirteenth-century costume, walked up.

"You'll be fine," the redhead said, patting him on the head. "Trust me. Just focus on playing your part. You can't have the drama of the play without Tybalt."

Roxas smiled weakly. "I guess not. Do me a favor and make sure Marluxia falls on his ass like you made him last night at practice, okay?"

Axel saluted. "I'll do my best. Uh-oh, looks like we're about to start. Mr. Knightley's already on stage!"

The curtains opened to reveal their English teacher standing in a spotlight at center stage. He began the introductory speech, giving a brief history of the play before launching into the prologue. His voice resonated around the room, making sure to catch the attention of the audience. When he was done, the curtains closed for a short time, just enough for the crew to get the first props set up. The actors playing the servants in the opening scene took their places, and the play began.

Roxas waited for his cue to appear. As he walked towards the open stage, Axel pecked him on the cheek. "Good luck!"

"What, art thou drawn among these heartless hinds?" the blonde boy bellowed, brandishing his sword. "Turn thee, Benvolio. Look upon thy death."

Roxas managed to make it through his part of the first scene without so much as one stumble or forgotten word. When it was Axel's turn to go on stage, the blonde gave him a kiss and the same wish of luck as the redhead had done for him as he walked into the spotlights.

"Good morrow, cousin," Riku, playing Benvolio, said as Axel appeared.

"Is the day so young?" Axel launched into the scene with gusto, making himself the very picture of a heartsick teenager.

The time passed quickly after that. Roxas found himself reveling in the crowd's attention, listening to them boo loudly when he tried to fight Axel, and did his best not to smile as he lay on the wooden stage feigning death after Axel struck him down for killing Mercutio.

By the end of the play, there was not a dry eye in the room. Axel's performance of the scene in the graveyard with Juliet was so moving, even Roxas found tears welling up in his eyes. Larxene's performance after she awoke only caused more sadness as she wailed in horror at the sight of her slain "beloved." From where he was sitting behind the curtain, Roxas could've almost sworn he saw Axel smile as Larxene faked stabbing herself with a dagger so she could join her departed lover. As Prince Escalus delivered the final lines, the crowd erupted into wild cheers and applause. The crowd stood up, a few people at a time, until every single person was on their feet.

The play was an overwhelming success. The applause after all the cast and crew assembled on stage went on for what seemed like forever, wave after wave of clapping showering them with praise. The last three nights of the play received even more praise. The last night, there were so many people in attendance they almost ran out of seats in the huge theater.

Roxas had never felt so proud of doing something in his life. Mr. Knightley and the other teachers involved threw a party for them after the last performance, congratulating each and every one of them on a job well done.

The last two weeks of school before graduation passed by so quickly Roxas hardly even noticed them. Most of it was spent goofing off in class and relaxing at home whenever he and Axel weren't college-searching. Axel's parents, however, began freaking out at the realization that both their real and their honorary son would be graduating and going out into the world all by themselves soon.

Roxas could see why they were so terrified. He himself didn't fancy the idea of being at the mercy of the whole world outside his own little universe. Axel, however, kept trying to reassure them all. He was the only one who could keep a cool head at times like these.

Graduation day itself began to loom large in their vision. The red Sharpie circle on the calendar taped to the front of the refrigerator was beginning to make Roxas's eyes hurt every time he so much as glanced at it. And to think, he'd been _excited_ about this whole thing once. Now, he wished it would just go away and leave him in peace.

The night before, Mrs. von Fusen made them let her take pictures of them in their blue and gold caps and gowns, the school colors of Traverse High. After they had retreated to their room to go to sleep for the night, Axel caught Roxas in an embrace that said everything his silent mouth did not. _I love you. Thank you so much for staying with me this long. I'm sorry for all the fights we've had. Please, stay with me forever_.

Roxas would be happy to oblige.

~::~

The sheer size of the entire senior class stunned Roxas. There were almost as many students in the chairs set out in the school auditorium as there had been in his entire high school back in Twilight Town. He glanced over his shoulder to see Axel's parents, along with Hayner, Pence, and Olette, who had arrived shortly before ten o' clock that morning, sitting in the section reserved for family and friends behind the masses of seniors. He allowed himself to smile and then turned back. Axel caught his eye from his seat a few chairs over and two rows ahead, giving him a thumbs-up signal, which the blonde returned with another smile.

The principal stood and walked over to the podium in the center of the stage, starting the ceremony with a speech about the group of seniors as a whole, then going on to talk about the various clubs and sports teams before handing the microphone over to the vice principal to start announcing the students' names and handing out diplomas. However, before he did this, the valedictorian was supposed to give a speech.

"Before we get down to business, I'd like to welcome our valedictorian, Axel von Fusen, to give a short speech!"

Roxas's jaw hit the floor. He turned around to see Axel's parents positively bursting with pride. His old friends looked just as shocked as he felt. The blonde turned back to see that Axel was already standing behind the podium, microphone in hand. "Four years is a long time to be stuck in one building with a bunch of other teenagers, I'll admit, but it's been the best four years of my life. I've met some amazing people here, and learned more than I ever imagined I would. I'm sure I speak for most, if not all, of the students when I say that we're pretty happy to have gone to school here," The redhead turned away, as if he were done, but suddenly whipped back around and punched the air with his fist. "We did it!"

Wild cheers erupted from the seniors in attendance in response to this. The vice principal and the principal both fist-bumped Axel as he made his way off the stage and back to his seat. The vice principal started listing off the names of the students alphabetically, and they walked up to the podium to receive their degrees and shake the principal's hands.

When Roxas's name was called, he tried his best not to trip over all of the other student's feet and his long robe as he made his way across the room. The principal gave him a firm hand shake as he gave him his diploma. The von Fusens and his friends from Twilight Town cheered for him as they had for Axel several minutes before.

As the last student returned to their seat, the principal stood up again and walked over to the podium for one last time before this group of student s were officially free from high school forever. "It's been an honor to be your principal these last four years," he said, smiling out at the seniors. "I know I never got the chance to get to know many of you personally, but I'd still like to thank each and every one of you for attending this school. You've all taught my invaluable things about myself and the world around me just by being here to grow and to learn. So, it is with great pride that I'd like to tell you congratulations, graduating class! You did it!"

The crowd of seniors erupted into wild cheering as they leapt out of their seats. Every single one of them threw their cap into the air, showering the room with dark blue hats. The family and friends seated behind them raced to meet their loved ones so they could celebrate together.

"Congratulations, baby!" Mrs. von Fusen told Axel as she squeezed the living daylights out of him and Roxas at the same time. "You too, Roxas. I'm so proud of you." Mr. von Fusen clapped them both on the backs, looking like he, too, was about to cry.

"Roxas!" Hayner, Pence, and Olette jumped on Roxas and refused to unwrap their arms from around him until he promised to come visit them in Twilight Town soon. They also gave Axel a slightly more subdued congratulations.

"Come on, we're going to go get some lunch to celebrate," Axel's mother said, dragging the teenagers towards the door that led outside. Laughing, they followed her.

After several hours spent eating, talking, and buying graduation presents, the group returned home. Hayner, Pence, and Olette left a short while after, saying that their own graduation was in a couple of days, and they needed to get back as soon as they could. Roxas shared a tearful goodbye with them and then returned to the living room, where Axel and his parents were seated.

"Roxas, Axel's father and I are going to go out with some of the other parents tonight, so we're going to leave you and Axel here by yourselves. We'll be back sometime before eleven o' clock, so be good until then, alright?"

The two boys nodded and then went up to their room.

"I can't believe it," Roxas breathed sitting down heavily on Axel's bed. "We really _did_ make it."

"And you thought we wouldn't?" Axel sat down next to him and grinned. "How little faith you have in us."

Roxas shoved him playfully. "Oh, shut up, Mr. Valedictorian," Axel stuck his tongue out at the blonde, earning a laugh from him. "Gee, for a couple of high schools graduates, we're pretty childish."

"Boys, we're leaving!" Mrs. von Fusen called from the bottom of the stairs.

"Okay! See you later!" Axel replied. He then turned back to Roxas. "Yeah, a bit, but what's wrong with that? We're all a little childish at some point."

"True," Roxas admitted.

A few minutes of silence elapsed. Suddenly, Axel stood up and walked over to his dresser. He opened the top drawer and pulled out his journal before returning to the bed. He looked as if he were about to start writing in it when his cell phone began ringing. He pulled out it and answered.

Roxas could hear the voice on the other end of the line from where he was sitting. "Axel? Hey. So… I just got the test results back from the doctor's office."

"You did? Good or bad?" Axel replied hesitantly.

Larxene paused. "Well, it depends on which one you are," Both boys held their breath as she gathered herself. "Axel, you're… you're _not_ my baby's father."

Roxas, who had been prepared for the worst, couldn't stop himself from letting out a heavy sigh of relief. Axel looked like he was about to faint from sheer relief.

"Marluxia already knows, and he said he's sorry for doing this to me… We're going to keep the baby, and see if we can support it ourselves," Larxene said. "I… Thank you for putting up with me all the time we were together. But now, you can go your own way, alright? Roxas, I know you're listening, so will you do something for me?"

Startled, the blonde boy replied, "What?"

"Keep him safe. I'd hate for that redheaded dumbass to get himself hurt," she said, her uncharacteristic gentleness instantly replaced by her usual condescending sarcasm.

Roxas grinned. "Okay. I'll do my best."

"And Axel? Try not to run him ragged. This kid's got real potential," Another said something on the other end of the line. Larxene said something to them and continued talking to Axel and Roxas. "Thank you for everything guys, but I have to go now. Marluxia's here. I'll… well, I doubt we'll see each other again, but who knows? Maybe someday you'll get to meet my baby in person."

"I hope we will," Axel said. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye." The line went dead.

Axel suddenly grabbed Roxas and began squeezing him to death. "I can't believe it! I think I just used up all of my luck for a life time!"

"Axel… choking… let go!" Roxas tried to squirm out of his embrace, but the redhead held him there, loosening his grip slightly as he leaned in to kiss him.

The redhead suddenly released him and retrieved his journal from where it had fallen on the floor. "Well, now that that's taken care of… I've decided that I trust you enough to show you my journal now. But before I do, I've got something for you. Will you go get that folder with all the paper hearts in it for me?" Roxas did as he was asked and handed it to the redhead. In return, Axel pulled a pink construction paper heart identical to the ones in the folder from between the pages of his notebook and handed it to Roxas. "This is the last one. Number thirteen."

Roxas stared at the piece of paper in his hands, unable to process what he had just learned. Finally, he regained control over his mouth. "That whole time… It was _you?_ But… They smell like vanilla. And they're pink. I thought you hated pink!"

Axel turned red. "I know. I didn't want you to find out. That's why I never left my name for you."

"I just… I can't believe it. I never thought for a second that it was you," Roxas shook his head in amazement. "Will you tell me what the letters at the bottom mean? I never could figure it out."

"I can do better. Here. You can read this now. I don't want to keep any more secrets from you," Axel handed him the black journal. "I trust you."

Roxas opened to the first page. The only thing written there was a short note that said it was property of Axel von Fusen and should be returned if found. The next page only had three sentences written on it. "_That boy my parents told me about arrived today. Said his name is Roxas. I think he may be the one_." The blonde boy looked up at Axel in surprise. "You weren't kidding."

"Of course I wasn't. I can't lie very well, remember?"

Roxas kept reading, his eyes widening with every turn of the page. Finally, he stopped on one very familiar poem. It was titled "You Are Not A Sin." Axel took the journal from him and proceeded to read the poem in its entirety, no longer broken apart and spread out onto thirteen fragile paper hearts.

"Your black-and-white checkered backpack

screams indecision from its place on the floor. Straps

torn, seams ripped, is it the picture of time-worn care

(_or_ _is_ _it_ _dejection?_)

and it weighs down your spirit like

so many tons of stone. Fluttering wing beats

(_or is it your fragile heart pounding?_)

echo throughout the corridors of the building

where you wander, a place

where countless feet have trodden in the past.

(_Faith is not a sin._)

Now you are just a shadowy silhouette,

a fragment of the person you once were

before your crystalline world shattered

(_or did it burn to the ground?_)

and was scattered to the four winds.

You say your heart beats for no one

(_or are you just telling more lies?_)

and it never will, but I beg to differ; the ones like you

who deny and deny fall the hardest when tipped

headfirst into the endless abyss.

(_Love is not a sin._)

Quietly you watch the outside world from your little

fantasy, disregarding any and all that try to

aid you, love you; your dividing lark flew long ago

(_or did an earthquake topple your dreams?_)

to find a place where only safety reigns and you could

fade away into your origin, the darkness

(_or is it just diluted light?_)

that you claim has swallowed your soul. Total

oblivion can only be reached by those with no

oaths to keep and no real reason to breathe.

(_Hope is not a sin._)"

Roxas could hardly believe it. Almost every page in that journal, almost every word, was dedicated solely to him. And this… this was the crowning gem of Axel's work. "I… That's about me. I never knew that you felt like this…"

Axel smiled at him. "There's more. I can tell you what those random letters at the bottom mean, too."

"Please do. I spent way too long trying to figure it out by myself!" Roxas begged.

"Alright, alright, fine. Here we go:

I Promise To Always Love You.

I Promise To Always Help You.

I Promise To Always Hold You.

I Promise To Always Remember You.

I Promise To Always Respect You.

I Promise To Always Rescue You.

I Promise To Always Adore You.

I Promise To Always Cherish You.

I Promise To Always Comfort You.

I Promise To Always Trust You.

I Promise To Always Thank You.

I Promise To Always Treasure You.

I Promise To Always Believe You."

Once again, Roxas was stunned speechless. When he found his voice again, he spluttered, "But… but you don't make promises! You told me so, about a million times! Why would you… I don't…"

"Roxas, you changed my world," Axel dropped the journal on the floor and hugged the flabbergasted blonde boy. "I said a lot of things I don't believe in any more. I was too much of a coward to put my trust in someone else, or to have enough faith in myself to uphold my side of a promise, but now, I'm not so afraid any more. And, as of right now, I promise that I will do everything I just listed, no matter what. Can you try to do that for me, too?"

Roxas burst into tears without warning. He hugged Axel tight and sobbed into his shoulder. "Yes, yes, I will! I won't let you down, I promise!"

"Stop it," Axel said, voice thick with emotion. "You're gonna make me cry, too!"

Roxas pulled back and sniffled a little. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I love you, you know that, right?" Axel forestalled any response by kissing Roxas. The blonde kissed him back, moving so that he was sitting in Axel's lap, facing him. One of the redhead's hands slid under his shirt, causing Roxas to gasp as the cool skin met his own. Their kisses deepened as the seconds ticked away, and suddenly, Axel pulled away. "Roxas… If I asked you if you wanted to… you know… would you say yes?"

The blonde blinked in confusion. "Wanted to what?"

Axel rolled his eyes. "You know…" Roxas realized what he meant when the redhead's cheeks turned crimson.

"Oh. Um… I… Uh… Sure."

"Really?" The redhead seemed surprised. "Seriously?"

"Well… yeah. We're both legal, your parents are gone… What's stopping us? You didn't even have to ask."

"But I'm not that impolite, nor that bold," Axel replied, smirking. "Hold on a second. I've gotta get something." The redhead deposited Roxas on his bed and hurried over to his nightstand. He pulled out a small tube and a thin, square package from the drawer and returned. "These are always necessary."

"I'll remember that next time I want to have sex," Roxas replied, rolling his eyes. He wasn't _completely_ oblivious.

Axel set them down on the floor next to the bed and proceeded to take his shirt off. Roxas was hard put not to start drooling at the sight that awaited him. Axel didn't look like the muscular type, but his body was lean and wiry like a cat's. "Enjoying the scenery?"

"I'm gonna kill you if you tease me like last time," Roxas said as he pulled his own shirt off.

"Oh, believe me, I don't intend to," Axel replied, throwing both of their shirts across the room. "Pants. Off."

Roxas tried desperately to take them off sitting down, but only succeeding in looking like a total idiot. Axel helped him disentangle himself and then proceeded to remove his own blue jeans, revealing that he was already noticeably excited.

"Horny bastard," Roxas muttered as the redhead pounced on him and pinned him to the bed. "You sure like holding me down."

"Hey, it's not my fault you're so little," Axel stopped his indignant reply with a kiss. "However, you've well-endowed where it counts."

"Um, thank you?"

Axel laughed and tugged at the waistband of Roxas's boxers. "No, really. I mean it."

"…that has got to be the _weirdest_ compliment I've ever gotten."

"Congratulations," Axel succeeded in pulling his underwear off, revealing the blonde's erection. "Seems like I'm not the only eager one here."

"What happened to not teasing me?" The end of Roxas's sentence transformed into a moan as Axel licked his head lightly. The redhead quickly removed his own boxers while the blonde was distracted and then curled the fingers of one hand around the other boy's arousal. His free hand found its way to one of Roxas's ankles and began tracing patterns on his skin.

"A-Axel… Ah, fuck… Stop, that tickles!" The blonde's moans of pleasure were interspersed with giggles. "No really… Ah…"

Axel stopped for a brief instant to retrieve the bottle of lube and the condom on the floor next to the bed. He squirted some of the lube onto his finger and slid into Roxas as he took his dick into his mouth and began moving his head up and down slowly. Roxas hissed and moaned, feeling the fire in his gut start to build. Suddenly, Axel pulled back and stopped what he was doing.

"Hey, what are you…" Roxas began. Axel kissed him to shut him up for a little while longer. The blonde watched despite his blush as the redhead rolled the condom down the length of his erection and then began slicking himself with more lube.

"You're sure about this?" he asked.

"I already told you, you didn't have to ask me in the first place."

"Okay then. Here goes nothing…"

Roxas had never felt anything like this before. His entire body shuddered as Axel slowly pushed into him, gripping his shoulders tightly. The blonde boy let out a moan as Axel pulled out just a little bit faster. He went on like this, gradually getting faster and faster until Roxas's entire body felt like it was about to burst into flame if something didn't give out soon. Axel's owns moans of pleasure mingled with the blonde's as their pace kept increasing, muscles burning with the effort. Roxas was unable to say or do anything except moan and scream out Axel's name as his body moved to meet Axel's with every thrust. It felt like he was on fire, sweat slicking their bodies, the air around them hot and sticky. Finally, Roxas's body could take it no longer. In one huge rush the fire in his gut erupted, and he felt come splatter his and Axel's chests. Axel himself didn't hold out much longer, finally climaxing and then slowly drawing himself out of Roxas to flop down beside the blonde.

"_Holy_ _fuck_," Roxas panted, trying to stop himself from hyperventilating.

Axel pulled off the condom and tried to walk over to the trashcan, but he collapsed back on the bed, his knees unable to support him. Due to this, he just dropped the spent condom on the floor and curled up next to Roxas, pulling the sheets over them. "I think I'm gonna sleep until next week."

"Just next week? I could sleep until next _month_," Roxas replied, finally regaining the ability to breathe normally.

"Fair enough," Axel replied, pulling his boxers back on. Roxas did the same as he continued. "I love you."

"I know," Roxas rolled over so that he could kiss him. "I love you, too."

Roxas didn't know long he lay there in Axel's arms, the events of the last few months replaying themselves through his mind. It seemed like only yesterday he and Axel met, and now here they were, completely in love. It was a strange thing to think about.

_Well,_ Roxas decided, _maybe miracles really can happen_.


	13. Chapter Thirteen: Believe

**Author's Note: **I can't think of anything to say right now, so I'll add it at the end of this chapter.

~::~

_Four years later…_

~::~

It was autumn in Twilight Town again. The leaves were changing colors now, transforming from their usual bright green to more earthy tones of red and gold, trying to rival the sunsets with their beauty. The air was growing chillier when evening fell, although the afternoons were still warm.

Someone had moved into the white farmhouse in the main neighborhood that had stood empty ever since its prior occupants died in a terrible car crash. There were rumors going around town that one of them was from this very town, but had lived elsewhere for the past few years.

A blonde man, only slightly taller than he had been when he graduated high school, stared out the top floor window at the setting sun. His hair was in its usual distinctive spikes, although somewhat subdued, now that he was working. Another man, much taller and with wild red hair, came to stand beside him in the empty room.

"You know, it's been five years since we met," the redhead said, his voice tinged with nostalgia. "We've changed so much since then. It's almost hard to believe that we were ever younger…"

"We certainly have changed," the blonde replied dryly. "You've gotten extremely sentimental, Axel."

"I have not!" the redhead replied indignantly. "I just… Okay, yeah, I have. But you've gotten much more serious. Somebody has to have all the fun around here, Mr. Sinclair!"

The blonde man rolled his eyes and stood on his tiptoes to kiss Axel. "Oh, shut up. And call me Roxas. You're not one of my students."

Axel scratched the back of his head. "I also still can't believe you ended up wanting to be a _teacher_, of all things," He held up his hands defensively when Roxas glared at him. "Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course, but still, it surprised me.

"And you're an assistant in the biggest veterinary clinic in the county," Roxas said. "I thought you'd want to open your own."

"Maybe someday," Axel stared wistfully out the window. After a few moments of silence, he changed the subject. "We need to start unpacking, you know. My parents won't be here until tomorrow to help us, and we don't want to leave all the work for them, do we?"

Roxas shook his head and turned around to head downstairs. Axel caught him and pulled him in for a kiss. The smell of mint, no longer tainted by cigarette smoke, flooded the blonde's nose.

"Stop stalling," The blonde rolled his eyes, but couldn't hide his grin. "We've got work to do."

The two men walked downstairs and randomly chose one of the boxes to start unpacking. Axel cut the tape with a box cutter and pulled the flaps open. "Hey, looks like we picked he one with all the little stuff in it."

"Great," Roxas sighed. "We have nowhere to put it all yet. Pick another one."

"Hey, wait a second. What's this?" Axel pulled out a small folder from the box he was sitting in front of. Roxas went to sit down beside him as he inspected it.

Axel's eyes widened as he opened the folder and thirteen identical pink construction paper hearts fluttered to the floor. He picked them up and began leafing through them, tears welling up in his eyes as he did so.

"What's wrong with you?" the blonde man asked when he saw this. "Why are you crying over dinky little hearts?"

"Do you remember, during our last year of high school, I made these for you and left them in your locker? I thought we'd gotten rid of them!" Axel replied, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. "It just… There are so many memories attached to these things. It's hard not to look at them without crying."

"I do remember these…" Roxas reached out to touch one of them. "You're right. There are a lot of memories that go along with these. Speaking of memories, Larxene called for you while you were out. She said that her second baby was born today. It's a boy, and she said his name is Alex in honor of you."

"But my name isn't… Oh. Well, I'll give her props for creativity, switching up the letters like that," Axel grinned. "And that reminds _me_, Namine left a message on my cell phone earlier. It said she and Seifer are getting married in a few months, and she wants us to come."

"Really? After all that happened, she doesn't hate us?" Roxas asked incredulously.

"Nope," Axel grinned. "Sounds like she doesn't."

"It's so hard to believe that we've made it this far…" Roxas said after a few moments of silence.

"But look how far we've come," Axel said, kissing the blonde again. "Nothing can stop us now."

"Are you absolutely sure about that?"

"I promise."

Roxas smiled.

~::~

_Fin._

~::~

**Author's Note:** Oh, man. You have absolutely no idea how proud I am to be able to finally write those last two words. This fanfcition has been a real lesson to me on how to do what I love to be able to keep doing it. I know five months may seem like an incredibly short time compared to how long it takes others to write their own stories, but these last few months have been simply amazing. Honestly, I don't think I could have done it without every single person that read, reviewed, favorited, alerted, heck, even just glanced at the first chapter. Without the knowledge that people out there really cared about what I was writing... I may never have finished. I'd like to personally thank everyone who did what I just listed. You guys help sustain that little spark of life that I wrote into this.

And, to one very special person who's been here since this story first came into being: Thank you, my friend. I'll never doubt you again. I promise.

Until next time,

**_Moriens-der-Lyset_**


End file.
